The Chariot

The Chariot have always been a band whose live show far overshadows their recorded output. That's not to say their albums have been bad, on the contrary, the group's chaotic, noisy metallic hardcore has always been pretty good, but it almost sounded restrained compared to the unhinged chaos of the Chariot in the flesh. Well, that gap has effectively been closed with One Wing. Though not as consistently aggressive as past efforts, the Chariot ride through other seemingly non-related genres (à la Between the Buried and Me) throughout One Wing, adding a bipolar insanity to the album. Whether it's the hymn-esque "Your," the twangy, ride-through-the-West break in "First," the desperate screams over mourning piano in "Speak" or the music played under a speech on closer "Cheek," the band don't chain themselves to constant heaviness. That's not to say they've lost that aspect, they've simply expanded it: "Forget," "Not," "In" and the opening of "Love" all exhibit the their spastic trademark sound. With an album that measures up to their already remarkable live show, it will be interesting, or even frightening, to see One Wing performed live.