With members hailing from Long Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Delaware, Rain of Salvation are surrounded by some of the best metallic hardcore has to offer, including Vein, Sanction, Fuming Mouth, Buried Dreams, Typecaste and Atonement — even sharing members with the latter two. We've got the first taste of this new band via debut EP A War Outside and Within (out March 13) track "Call to Arms."
The song marches after the massive footsteps left by straight edge luminaries Foundation, with an angular approach to metallic hardcore replete with breakdowns and build-ups. It actually starts on one of the latter, with a snare roll underneath a muted riff that continues while the drums fill themselves out with, well, fills. It chugs from there, feeling both modern and retro thanks to sonic nods to Turmoil, All Out War and Chokehold. The modern side gets a nice boost at the end, with a call and response between vocalist James Austin and Year of the Knife's Tyler Mullen, as the breakdown shifts from a stomping punishing to a swifter one — without losing any punch.
Austin elaborates on the song's meaning via a statement that proves even those who aren't nailed to the X can find meaning in its lyrics:
"Call to Arms" isn't just a straight edge song. It's a song about having convictions and not giving them up just because people disagree with you, or someone thinks you're annoying. When you say something, you stick to it and you mean to it; you don't trade those values for anything. My convictions are something I'll take to my grave. They aren't just for now, they're forever.
Drummer Sal Argento touches on the band's story at large, explaining the circumstances that led to their formation, promising they're ready to hit the ground running:
A War Outside and Within is five tracks that were birthed during a really bad time in my life this past year. I couldn't deal with feeling the pressure that was dragging me down, so I turned to the only two constants in my life: music and straight edge. I spent countless hours shacked up with TJ Rotolico [guitarist] in my bedroom going back and forth trying to throw ideas against the wall, and these five songs are the ones that stuck. This band is my release and, now that it has come to fruition, I couldn't be more excited to share these tracks and get behind the kit again.
You can hear the result of those bedroom jam sessions below, and follow the band on Instagram and Twitter for upcoming shows and other news.
UPDATE (3/13, 10:30 a.m. EST): You can listen to the full EP now.
The song marches after the massive footsteps left by straight edge luminaries Foundation, with an angular approach to metallic hardcore replete with breakdowns and build-ups. It actually starts on one of the latter, with a snare roll underneath a muted riff that continues while the drums fill themselves out with, well, fills. It chugs from there, feeling both modern and retro thanks to sonic nods to Turmoil, All Out War and Chokehold. The modern side gets a nice boost at the end, with a call and response between vocalist James Austin and Year of the Knife's Tyler Mullen, as the breakdown shifts from a stomping punishing to a swifter one — without losing any punch.
Austin elaborates on the song's meaning via a statement that proves even those who aren't nailed to the X can find meaning in its lyrics:
"Call to Arms" isn't just a straight edge song. It's a song about having convictions and not giving them up just because people disagree with you, or someone thinks you're annoying. When you say something, you stick to it and you mean to it; you don't trade those values for anything. My convictions are something I'll take to my grave. They aren't just for now, they're forever.
Drummer Sal Argento touches on the band's story at large, explaining the circumstances that led to their formation, promising they're ready to hit the ground running:
A War Outside and Within is five tracks that were birthed during a really bad time in my life this past year. I couldn't deal with feeling the pressure that was dragging me down, so I turned to the only two constants in my life: music and straight edge. I spent countless hours shacked up with TJ Rotolico [guitarist] in my bedroom going back and forth trying to throw ideas against the wall, and these five songs are the ones that stuck. This band is my release and, now that it has come to fruition, I couldn't be more excited to share these tracks and get behind the kit again.
You can hear the result of those bedroom jam sessions below, and follow the band on Instagram and Twitter for upcoming shows and other news.
UPDATE (3/13, 10:30 a.m. EST): You can listen to the full EP now.
