Chelsea Grin - Suffer In Heaven (Album Review)
Chelsea Grin - Suffer In HeavenReleased: March 17, 2023
Line Up:
Tom Barber // VocalsStephen Rutishauser // GuitarsDavid Flinn // BassNathan Pearson // Drums
Chelsea Grin online:
Four months since Chelsea Grin gave us the tremendous Suffer In Hell, they’ve returned with it’s compatriot Suffer In Heaven. With double albums having a sketchy history in the music biz, the deathcore troupe chose the wise route by deciding to separate the release into two, eight-track chunks. With the first effort being a fantastic further expansion of the band’s evolution in their post Eternal Nightmare era, Chelsea Grin’s main completion for Suffer In Heaven is simply themselves.
We’re immediately off the races with a big meaty pair of openers in ‘Leave With Us’ and wonderfully titled ‘Orc March’. The former is a tone-setting opener, leading in with creeping clean guitars and a distorted sample from the infamous Heaven’s Gate cult. Needless to say all hell breaks loose with a wall of drums, chugging guitars and Tom Barber’s layered roars and screams. ‘Orc March’ keeps things going with the aptly lurching cut moving by at a stomping tempo, while the titanic ending passage is bolstered by guest vocals from Dustin Mitchell of up-and-comers Filth.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWZzdoQjTmE
The John F Kennedy sampling ‘Fathomless Maw' is a great single and probably the most initially grabbing tune on the LP, with a catchy, heavy main theme anchoring the song. The positive of the release only being eight tracks is the ease of digestibility, which really helps to get a lay of the land of Suffer In Heaven quickly. ‘Soul Slave’, channeling Emmure vibes, and first single ‘Sing to the Grave’ fly by without much to grab, both a little too short and without enough hooks. Fortunately these are really the only two weaker moments, but the record as a whole is just not quite up the same level of Suffer In Hell.
That’s not to say that Chelsea Grin haven’t delivered a killer modern deathcore album of course. 'Yhorm the Giant’ is a second-half high spot, quickly ditching it's 8bit intro for thunderous riffs, tricky runs and apocalyptic orchestral backing. It’s most interesting moment is the reverb soaked bridge, adding a fresh arrow in the quartet's quiver. ‘The Path of Suffering’ is a fine closer, with the group wisely putting a lot of effort into the collection’s finale. Guitarist Stephen Rutishauser, who must be considered the double LP’s MVP with his explosive playing, let’s rip with a massive guitar solo before the song’s cinematic ending wraps up the record.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhUuWYbMY9w
Suffer In Heaven doesn’t quite have consistency of it’s counterpart, but it’s still an excellent companion for Suffer In Hell. Fans of layered production will eat this album up, with a huge amount of low end coming through, as well as endless waves of guitars, samples, vocals and more. It’s not meticulously pieced to the point of sounding soulless, more the kitchen sink/wall of sound approach. With 16 forward-thinking tracks between the two releases, Chelsea Grin have proved that they are still one of the leaders of the genre. The Suffer duology is deathcore triumph.
Chelsea Grin – Suffer In Heaven tracklisting
1. Leave With Us
2. Orc March
3. Fathomless Maw
4. Soul Slave
5. The Mind of God
6. Yhorm The Giant
7. Sing to the Grave
8. The Path of Suffering
Rating: 8/10
Suffer In Heaven is out March 17 on ONErpm Records. Order here
Review By – Andrew Kapper. Twitter: @andrew_kapper
