THE AGONY SCENE “Get Damned”
Tulsa, Oklahoma’s THE AGONY SCENE burst into the metalcore community with their stunning 2003 self-titled Solid State debut. Taking a rare path, and arguably, shunning the Christian tag of the label, the band left Solid State for its follow-up, The Darkest Red, and took up residence in the metal powerhouse, Roadrunner Records. Things never got comfortable with Roadrunner; the band’s rising status was seemingly put on hold, and critically, The Darkest Red was received with lukewarm interest, despite bearing an even heavier footprint than their debut. In late 2006, THE AGONY SCENE inked a deal with Abacus Recordings, and with that label’s subsequent implosion, the group found itself within the grip of the all-star metal factory, Century Media Records, and with Get Damned (produced by Andreas Magnusson), their third full-length in tow.
All of that maneuvering would break lesser bands, but THE AGONY SCENE’s music is worth fighting for – a feeling that this band obviously believes in. Get Damned follows a common thread in 2007 – less core and more metal. From the shredtastic, and undeniably catchy opener “Barnburner,” to the Kill ‘Em All feel of “White Nights,” and the 150 second pummeling of “Rattle Me Bones,” THE AGONY SCENE do away with chugging excess and pray on the riffs of the unprotected. Get Damned isn’t some barebones skeleton of thrash however – “Rapture,” features subtle electronics and galloping double-bass in the vein of SOILWORK and SCARLET,” while “Deliverance” dramatically echoes the guitar madness performed by one of Sweden’s top metal exports, IN FLAMES. Vocalist Mike Williams is completely at the top of his game, showing off a versatile shouting/growling style that’s both caustic and dominating; it’s the best he has sounded since the band’s debut, and reverses the damage done on The Darkest Red where his presence was severely buried in the mix.
On all fronts, Get Damned stands out as the product of a band hellbent on survival and hungry for a chance to be the band that everyone thought they were going to be. For the lucky listener, that’s often the best kind of inspiration.
Century Media
