“Neck deep, only bad decisions in my history.”
liveconformdie have always had this swaggering edge to their music. Ever since their debut effort, Vol. I, all the way back in 2016, they’ve always clearly had something going on with their sound. They emerged in what I deem to be the nu-metal revival era of metalcore in the mid-2010s, led by bands like Darke Complex and Loathe, that eventually snowballed into what we now know as the nu-metalcore movement. It wasn’t until liveconformdie dropped 2019 single “Luxury Letdown” that I feel they truly found their footing, though. The pounding, earth-shaking guitars in ungodly low tunings; the attitude-laden lyrics and vocal delivery; the groovy nu-metal bounce to the whole thing – “Luxury Letdown” just worked.
While it took a minute (two years to be exact) to hear the song’s follow-up in 2021’s “Terrorwave”, the wait certainly felt worth it when I blasted that song for the first time. An equally hard-as-nails instrumental, now featuring elements of hardbass amongst the trap-djent stylings the band had found such solid footing with. It was then we got a glimpse of what was to come, with a piece of artwork teasing what we have now: 2022’s Vol. II: Music For Living Failures.
I won’t mince words – Vol. II certainly isn’t perfect, but god damn is it fun. While I do feel the EP opens with its weakest foot forward in “Fetish” – a song with elements to love to be sure, but structurally just feels… off, especially as the EPs opener – I certainly have more positive to say about this song, and the EP as a whole than negative.
Following tracks are sonically polarized singles “Help Yourself”, along with the aforementioned “Terrorwave”. These tracks truly demonstrate the broad=reaching sonic palette of the EP. While the former track leans more into the more subdued and melodic side of their nu-metal-esque style, replete with clean-sung verses, a massive chorus, and low-key pulsating synth drums, the latter certainly does not. As previously mentioned, “Terrorwave” is a frenetic freak show of a track, darting effortlessly back and forth between genres that, on paper, should not work together – but they just do.
However, what follows is perhaps the biggest surprise of the EP: “Trash Culture”. While I suppose I shouldn’t have been that blindsided by a full trap song appearing on an EP that pulls from rap influences so overtly, I never expected it to be this fucking good. The vocal sample that serves as the track’s main backing melody provides the track a nostalgic soundscape, while the vocal delivery reminds me more of BROCKHAMPTON’s Bearface and Joba than any nu-metal influence you could identify. It’s a sonic curveball within the broader sound of the EP for sure, but a more than welcome one.
The EP’s final two tracks see liveconformdie do what they do best: write crazy, bouncy, swaggering nu-metalcore tunes. The first of the two, “Big Homie”, is probably the strongest track on the entire EP. The track encapsulates the swaggering energy this record embodies to a T, with some of the hardest one-liners and rap flows across the entire EP. Closing track “Nu Life” further impresses as one of the EP’s most diverse cuts. Jumping between the melodic nu-metal style of “Help Yourself”, all the way to the heaviest moments of “Terrorwave”, “Nu Life” truly feels like a closing track, bringing together all the elements of what makes Vol. II great in one tight four-minute package.
Overall, despite some teething problems and occasional hamfistedness in its presentation, Vol. II: Music For Living Failures is an incredibly solid, and more importantly fun endeavor from the Aussie metalcore prospects. liveconformdie’s swaggering blend of ballistic, downtuned djent alongside elements of trap, nu-metal and hardbass provide a unique listening experience that begs to be digested and absorbed over multiple listens. Both to its credit and its detriment, the length of the release certainly helps in that regard, clocking in at a 22-minute runtime that absolutely flies by. I did hope for a little more content after so long away, but what’s here is more than a solid enough foundation to build upon, to ultimately give liveconformdie the pieces necessary to craft their opus, though I don’t feel they’ve quite got there just yet.
7.5/10
Vol. II: Music For Living Failures will be available this Friday, August 5th, via Guffy Crew, and you can pre-order the record here.