As I Lay Dying

Almost three years removed from their status-raising album, An Ocean Between Us, metalcore veterans As I Lay Dying don't miss a double-bass beat or a guttural growl on The Powerless Rise. Their fifth full-length continues to entangle carnage with beauty, something that has typified their past two albums. But they don't simply copy the past; they've made the heavy parts more extreme and the melodies more upfront, creating a great dichotomy between the two. "Parallels" best exemplifies this. After a laidback intro riff, Jordan Mancino enters with a frenetic beat, with Tim Lambesis showing his extended range, interchanging deep growls with fist-pumping screams. When the chorus hits though, Josh Gilbert's clean vocals begin the most infectious As I Lay Dying refrain yet. Other highlights include "Condemned," one of the heaviest songs on the album, controlled by Lambesis's beastly vocals and shredding guitars, and the thrashy "Beyond Our Suffering." Meticulously combining their inherent sense of aggression and melody to a greater degree than on past releases, The Powerless Rise is As I Lay Dying's most accomplished record yet.