Conquer Divide – Slow Burn
Release Date: 8th September 2023
Label: Mascot Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Modern Metal, Metalcore, Melodic Metal, Industrial Metal, Alternative Metal.
FFO: Spiritbox, Stitched Up Heart, As Everything Unfolds.
Review By: Mark Waight
Slow Burn is Conquer Divide’s long awaited second album following their 2015 self-titled debut. Conquer Divide are currently on tour across the USA with Electric Callboy as well as receiving plenty of attention from various forms of the multimedia industry.
Slow Burn deals with many issues relevant to the world today such as the constant neglect of our surroundings and this planet we call home, the traumas of the pandemic experienced by a member of Conquer Divide and the constant struggles of women in the music industry.
Conquer Divide is Kiarely Taylor (Vocals), Janel Duarte (Bass, Vocals), Isabel Johnson (Guitar), Kristen Sturgis (Guitar) and Samantha Landa (Drums).
Opening track Atonement has brief flashes of aggressive vocals, superbly combined with dreamy harmonies and monstrous riffs to create a wonderful, grooving start to the Slow Burn journey. The blitz continues with NEWHEAVEN, a glorious song with a very modern metal feel; not too heavy, not too light but perfectly in balance. It also has a catchy sing-along chorus to boot! Something Conquer Divide do fantastically well on Slow Burn.
Paralyzed is a beautifully haunting track. The pitch perfect clear vocals build us up to a crushing and brutal finale before again bringing everything gently to a close. This album is just getting better and better!
Heavy bass, synths and brutal vocals introduce us to welcome2paradise. A very dark thread runs deep through this song, with only brief moments of clarity shining through.
PRESSURE is an ultra-modern metal song through and through. There is a fusion of several genres here that are combined to deliver something very special with a universally wide appeal. It’s also well-placed in the album to give that moment of respite.
System_Failure ups the heaviness ante, as it pulsates through your ears, deep into your brain as the sound waves flow from left to right. This is a song that just cries out to be played very loud indeed, so crank up that volume button to max!
We all know what happens when Playing W/Fire, well in this case we get a more melodic delivery with a traditional edge to it. A very solid song with plenty of groove and an extremely tight band performance!
If you are expecting a sad love song with Over it, then you better get over it because what you do receive is a punk-tinged, attitude packed riff fest with more punch than Tyson Fury. Nice!
Afterthought.wav takes things up a notch or two with a hard as nails, scream-laden, downright dirty and guttural track. This is brutal, feral and brilliant! The Invisible, on the other hand, is a much lighter and more up-tempo tune with a rich and deep sound. There is even a string arrangement in the background, adding some extra quality to the mix and demonstrating that Conquer Divide have plenty more to offer.
Wide Awake continues the slightly softer thread with a well-constructed and superbly executed song. A prime example of exactly how modern metal should sound! Penultimate tune OnlyGirl follows neatly on in the same manner, with an electro/industrial theme and not a brutal vocal in sight. A very cool song with a vast spectrum of appeal.
gAtEkEePer closes off Slow Burn by sticking a middle digit up to all those who hold female artists back and prevent their growth in the still male dominated music industry. This song absolutely rocks and resonates with the truth!
Slow Burn by Conquer Divide was already on my pre-ordered list when I was asked to review the album, so I was super excited to get the opportunity to listen to this excellent album. The music industry needs to change and recognise that there are many fabulous female artists and bands out there and many of them such as Conquer Divide are worthy of more publicity and better slots at music festivals than they currently get! Let’s help make it happen! Get yourself a copy of Slow Burn by Conquer Divide and help stick it to the man! Highly recommended.
(4.5 / 5)
