To say that Bristol’s In Fear have been working hard would be a marked understatement. The progressive metalcore outfit have been brewing in the shadows over the past couple of years. Playing countless headline and supporting slots alike, landing a main stage spot at 2022’s UK Tech-Fest, and playing the festivals lower-scale Techabilitation weekender, it’s safe to say that they’ve been getting about as of late. Of course, it’s not for nothing, however. The quintet have been working tirelessly on their debut full length, that we now know as All Is. All Shall Be., which stands as not only their first LP and first extended release since 2019’s Solace EP, but also their first full project with powerhouse vocalist Haydn Connolly.
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Releasing in full on May 5th via Year of the Rat, with the record in its entirety being released as singles twice a month leading up to its release, the general sentiment within the band seems to be that this has been a long time coming, to say the least. However, in some ways, the band share a sentiment that perhaps the extended and much-delayed production time of All Is. All Shall Be. due to numerous factors beyond their control ended up only benefitting the album’s eventual turnout.
Detailing just how long the process ended up being, drummer Sam Kellaway states that the first version of the album’s lead single, “Abyss”, was written up his re-joining of the band in 2019. “[When] I joined the band, the first, and very close to final version of “Abyss” had literally been written the day before,” he says. “We [had] most of the songs within six or eight months of [writing “Abyss”], but they were by no means final.” He details that they fleshed out and developed the ideas they had for the album over time with their producer, the now-legendary George Lever (Sleep Token, Loathe, Monuments, etc.). “We spent a lot of time with George, who helped us [specify] what our sound should be. We were writing stuff that [either sounded] cool, but didn’t necessarily sound like In Fear, [or] didn’t necessarily cover any new ground.”
Connolly interjects, proclaiming that without the delays and line-up instability caused by the pandemic, he may not have ended up as the band’s frontman. “If it wasn’t for the pandemic, I probably wouldn’t be in this band.” He expanded that he was introduced to the band through a game of Call of Duty: Warzone over the extended isolation period, and that by the time he joined the album was mostly complete on the writing end. “I joined this band two years ago, and they [had] this full album written. [But,] it was written with Jake (Searle, former vocalist) in mind, and my vocals are very different to his, so it was quite a challenge.”
It seems their efforts were not in vain, however, as guitarist Ryan Simmons states that the band truly found their sound when Connolly entered the fold. “One of the visions that we had when we went into the writing process was [to] write an album that will hopefully stand out and do something different. I think one of the key elements [in that] has actually ended up being Haydn’s voice. Because, [while] the album [instrumentally] is definitely unique … I think what separates a lot of metal bands from each other is the vocalist … I think a lot of that comes down to the singing aspect, [as] Haydn explored a lot of really cool singing elements on the record [that we wouldn’t have had otherwise].”
That interim between Searle’s departure and Connolly’s arrival did not inspire confidence in the band, however. “We found ourselves in a really difficult position that no bands wants to find themselves in,” says Simmons. “We’ve got this huge album we’ve written with George Lever, [who] has helped write the album … we’ve got this vision, we know it could be great, but now we don’t have a singer. So, what do we do?”
After being introduced to Connolly over that fateful game of Warzone, they exchanged social media, and Simmons brought the prospect of him as a frontman to the band. Eventually, he got the part, but the band toiled with how to introduce Connolly to the world. “We decided to write a new song [separate from the album]. We decided we were going to release that [to announce] Haydn, because that made more sense [than going straight to the album], and then that bought us a bit [more] time to finish the album.” The band released the aforementioned track “Let Them Hate… So Long As They Fear” back in July of 2021, and went straight back to work on what ended up being the final version of the record.
While the album wrapped up in early 2022, the band were by no means eager to take it easy. Heading out on numerous touring runs throughout the year, as well as playing their aforementioned main stage slot at Tech-Fest. The band discussed that main stage set, and detailed their experiences playing such a big stage in comparison to their usual forte. “It’s really weird,” says Connolly, “Because I’m so used to playing shows where [the crowd is right in my face].”
The band went on to say that, despite the difference in size from their usual shows, it didn’t feel all too alien for them. “It felt strangely comfortable.” says Kellaway, with Simmons interjecting to say “I was kind of expecting to get up on stage and [have] a mini internal meltdown and struggle, but I just had loads of fun.” He goes on to say that perhaps the reason it felt so comfortable and natural was owed to the notoriously welcoming community at Tech-Fest, stating “I think that says quite a lot about the festival as well, because we had a proper laugh there. Everyone there is so nice, [it just] made it feel like you were playing at home, or like just playing in front of your mates, even though there’s loads of people there.”
The rollout for All Is. All Shall Be commenced early last month, with lead single “Abyss”, followed by “Cessation”, which seems to have been turning some heads. With the release of that single, as well as the two that followed it, the band have recently crossed the 20,000 monthly listener threshold, and seem to be only growing as time goes on. With many more singles to come, as well as the full release in all its glory coming in May, it seems there’s much to be excited about in the coming months from the In Fear camp.
All Is. All Shall Be. will be released on May 5th via Year of the Rat, and you can find pre-orders for the record here. Further, you can find the album’s official artwork and track listing below.
Make sure to check back in the coming months for more exciting announcements from In Fear, and a litany of other up-and-coming UK bands, and make sure to check out our Ones To Watch In 2023 article, which included the Bristol unit.
TRACKLIST:
1. Shoreline
2. All Is
3. Purest Fire
4. The Blinding White
5. Rest
6. Wither
7. Remember Me
8. Virtue & Regret
9. Trace My Skin
10. Doom Sequence
11. Abyss
12. Narrow Gate
13. Cessation
14. All Shall Be