Album/EP

Left To Suffer – Feral (Album Review)

Walladmin

Heavy Metal Wordsmith

May 13, 2023

7 min read

Left To Suffer – Feral
Released: May 12, 2023

Line up:

Taylor Baber // Vocals
Peter Higgs // Guitars
Jacob Gordon // Guitars
Christian Nowatzki // Bass
Alex Vavra // Drums

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We've been monitoring Left To Suffer's growth over the past couple of years here at Wall of Sound, and it's finally time to dive into their debut album Feral. It's been a neck-snapping good time for deathcore this year already, and I'm stoked to see what these nu-deathcore monsters can bring to the table. With visceral aggression as a primary theme and Feral being a "culmination of everything that Left to Suffer as a whole has wanted to create since ... inception", I was keen to strap myself in.

Dreary and thick guitar tones with deep vocals introduce us to this album in the title track 'Feral'. I love the constantly tough guitars throughout this track which contrasts with vocalist Taylor Barber. He delivers an angry mix of growls throughout, as well as the occasional melodic singing while dancing around a couple of strong breakdowns to kick off this album.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ye94zLHBOw

Left To Suffer turn the dial up to the max with the hard-hitting brutality on 'Artificial Anatomy'. Aggressive speed via fast vocals and deep gutturals courtesy of featured guest artist (from Australia) Kim Dracula ensure this song expresses a wave of untamed anger. Taylor's shrieks and a thumping breakdown take us to the next track. 'Primitive Urge' brings the melodic strings for a short intro sequence before restarting the aggression. Guitarists Peter Higgs and Jacob Gordon keep the heavy strums coming throughout the melodic strings, giving a sense of scope to this song. It feels like Taylor's screams are encompassing the audience within a great hall of sorts. Sprinkle on some gutturals courtesy of Joe Bad of Fit For An Autopsy and you have a song that is destined to light up the stage.

'Break the Fever' continues the aggression with a brutal tirade courtesy of drummer Alex Vavra. I continued to appreciate Taylor's variety too, with frying highs and ominous lows. Whatever the hell goes on about a minute and seven seconds in, the rough guitar effects, caused me to take a pause from listening for a second and exclaim "that was fucked" in the best way possible. Something about the use of that particular effect and inducement of hype highlights the efforts in producing and mixing this track. Chuck in some excellent guitar solos and you have a winner of a track. The intro to 'Recluse' feels like a walk into a gladiatorial arena for the first minute, punctuated by callouts from Taylor and some tough basslines from bassist Christian Nowatzki. Aggressive and full-force nu-deathcore is present here, as well as some quiet interludes to catch a quick breath. That does not detract however from how consistent and powerful 'Recluse' is. The breakdown sounds like something that should be in a video game a la DOOM Eternal, with a careful mix applying distortion where appropriate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pSNIElmlNQ

Strong riffs and deep tones are the highlights of 'Illusion of Sleep', which consists of a short yet powerful crescendo and a thumping breakdown that feels like a tease of what's further to come in this album. 'Disappoint Me' is another heavy hitter of a track that just knocks your head back and forth from the opening second. Featuring a cheeky blegh, a breakdown with groove, and further range on vocals and you have a short and sweet yet impactful track. The aggression is prevalent throughout the drums all throughout.

Concluding with 'Consistent Suffering', this track delivers some awesome surprises. A metalcore-like chorus and riffs make for soft listening in comparison to the album, but this is followed by nu-metal-esque verses and percussions before blistering heavy deathcore. This multi-genre track is a huge standout and ensures that Left To Suffer concludes this album with style.

Left To Suffer's latest endeavour is a phenomenal effort for the band. They have showcased exactly why they are a force to be reckoned with, by presenting an album that demonstrates the talent each member possesses. This album is sure to go down as one of the bigger deathcore releases of 2023.