Code Orange: I Am King

Formerly Code Orange Kids, this Pittsburgh noise machine have undergone a substantial transformation that comes to fruition on this record.

Don’t panic if you’re a longstanding fan; there are blasts of the white-knuckle hardcore in the vein of Nails and Trash Talk and virtually all of the track lengths remain short and sweet, but this is a darker, more progressive album that has as much in common with the anvil-heavy groove of sludge as it does uncontrollable hardcore. Much in the way Trap Them’s latest effort contains a more sinister feel, the likes of Slow Burn are a hybrid between that lurching, claustrophobic menace and their natural arty, angular leanings. Dreams In Inertia is the standout example: an evil, torturous grind that is the perfect ‘yin’ to Unclean Spirit and Alone In A Room’s riotous ‘yang’. For all the change, Code Orange’s progression in sound doesn’t feel unnatural off the back of Love Is Love // Return To Dust and marks a different but no less enthralling (or heavy) experience.

Via Deathwish Inc