“Grinding the red eye, wasting the night into days.“
It seems not too long ago that Crystal Lake were foretold as an act that would be the future of metalcore. While their writing was often obtuse at times, they made up for it with a wealth of energy by playing into the neo-futuristic aesthetic of the time, which others, such as Northlane, were leaning into with absolute perfection. Even a passing cynic, which some of us were at the time, would be converted by seeing Crystal Lake in a live setting. They displayed an infectious energy, intent on pulling the crowd in and surfing on them. While Crystal Lake weren’t always the perfect metalcore act, that energy and sense of gravitas in their sound is what drew many people in.
There was the well-documented shakeup, with Ryo Kinoshita departing the band and later forming Knosis, which met with limited success. It was a move that questioned the foundation of Crystal Lake, putting their very survival in question. Through twists and turns, they landed with John Robert Centorrino, formerly of The Last Ten Seconds Of Life, as their new vocalist. Pivoting this on a single titled “Rebirth“, it certainly showed that there was the intent from Crystal Lake to view this as a new era. Initial signs, including the aforementioned single, were promising. It would be in the context of a full release that would show how well-formed this new era of Crystal Lake would be, and is one that The Weight of Sound certainly provides an answer to.
As expected, the intensity and sheer loudness that Crystal Lake have made a staple of their sound over the years is present as ever. As “Everblack” kicks in, the instrumentals are there to rip your ears off and rattle awake every sense in your body. While there are more melodic touches at times, in moments such as the title track “The Weight Of Sound” and “Sinner“, the run time is another full blast of Crystal Lake‘s energetic metalcore. This does raise the same issue that Helix had, which is that it can become rather exhaustive towards the tail end of the record. They’ve always matched the sound with a higher compressed production, which can simply tire out listeners. Packed with breakdowns, too, nothing here feels earned. There is no payoff to a tense track building to the breakdown; it’s just a constant wave of heavier moments.
While it may seem unfair to directly compare Crystal Lake to their previous material, given they’ve largely stuck with the same sound, it’s difficult not to. There is a certain dated feeling to their sound and aesthetic, one they’ve been running with for a decade now, yet the most out-of-place part does unfortunately seem to be the vocals. This isn’t to say that Centorrino is a bad vocalist, who did more than an impressive job during his time with The Last Ten Seconds of Life, yet this record does bring into question his fit in Crystal Lake. A larger vocal timbre than what came before, it does have the feeling of replacing a 100m sprinter with a weightlifter. Centorrino‘s hefty vocals, while doing a good job at attempting to do so, do not fit the energy and vibrancy that made Crystal Lake‘s sound such an infectious force before.
This isn’t assisted by the lyrical content being largely hit-and-miss. While there are moments of quality, mainly contained in the aforementioned title track “The Weight Of Sound“, which has an authenticity to it, the lines “The city lights go black as I find my way back” cut through the verbosity of the record. Two tracks that sandwich this iteration showcase the downtrodden metalcore lyric tropes, with “Dystopia” yelling out “I’m not a martyr, you’re not a God” and the joyously named “The Undertow” choosing the lyric “I’m dragging us down in the undertow“, in the year 2026. Closer “Coma Wave” sees The Weight of Sound go full ballad to bookend things, with contents of “It’s time to scratch the itch” and “The devil’s inside me calling my bluff“. While there is much more below the surface, it’s difficult for these cliché lyrics to stick out.
As touched on, there is one thing that Crystal Lake continue to do right, which is the sheer energy of their sound. While it can be tiresome, for those willing to either get through a full sitting or simply wander through a track or two, Crystal Lake are still one of the most frenetic metalcore acts going. Instrumentally, each gear clicks into place as the combustion of their sound kicks in, each bombastic riff backed by a drum groove that must take some cardio to keep pace with. It is within these smatterings that Crystal Lake keep their identity, and stop from blending into the ever-growing blur of modern metalcore bands.
It does leave this era of Crystal Lake feeling somewhat blunted. There is always a challenge when switching vocalists, which is the most difficult change a band can navigate. Crystal Lake need to boldly define their new era, as for now it feels like it is stuck between two different places, and different members who are yet to find how to gel together successfully. And given the sinking stock that this current modus operandi of metalcore has, they’d better find it sooner than later.
5/10
The Weight of Sound is out January 23rd via Century Media Records, and can be pre-ordered here.