Nothing Noble – Modern Dismay
Release Date: 6th August 2021
Label: Prime Collective
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Genre: Progressive Metalcore
FFO: Cold Night For Alligators, Ghost Iris, Cabal, Counterparts, MØL, Erra.
Review By: Ryan Shearer
I can’t help feeling a bit smug when finding a band with a small amount of followers early in their career, and looking back after a few years when they’re headlining tours thinking “I knew them before they were big”. I know, it’s a pompous and hipster way to think but at least I’m being honest – Nothing Noble are a new band on the scene with potential to be one of those bands. Fronted by vocalist Cornelius Qvist (just take a moment to appreciate how many points his name would score in a game of Scrabble), Modern Dismay is the Copenhagen band’s first full-length album.
Overflowing with groove, Modern Dismay is a dark and bouncy listen. Opener Modern Dismay and Bond of Blood (featuring Brendan Murphy of Counterparts/END fame) are certainly not lacking in the riff department. Rotting Away incorporates blast beats and Eternal Change features a haunting synth melody reminiscent of a WWII siren. There is a unique sense of melody underpinning the chunky guitar groove to add some interest to the rhythmic attack. As Shadows Grow Long strips the aggression back a little to give some more focus to softer, cleaner elements of the band. Torn Asunder, featuring Kim Song Sternhopf of MØL), takes sounds from the Hardcore genre to create a previously unexplored, emotionally evocative track.
As good a track as Carnation is, it perfectly personifies both the best and worst elements of Modern Dismay. The drums and electronics create new sounds and incorporate phrases that sound fresh, with the guitars bringing in something new relatively late to the game with clean melodies. The heavy guitars, while tonally strong, become repetitive quickly. Later tracks like Eternal Change with its tech-death style bridge and The Path to Peace with its ethereal intro do work in its favour to add some extra flavours into the recipe, but the reliance on dissonant melodies and uniform harsh vocals from Mr Qvist don’t work in its favour.
As expected with a band boldly describing themselves as progressive metal, a high and polished production should be obvious. This thankfully is the case, with a great sounding mix throughout and audibly aggressive bass (especially on Risen where it really helps bulk the track out). Palette cleansers Carnation and Essence help to highlight the less prominent electronics, which play an understated but integral part to Nothing Noble’s sound. However, Modern Dismay doesn’t really do enough to justify it’s ‘progressive’ label. Most ‘standard’ metalcore bands these days use the same stylistic and compositional choices seen on Modern Dismay, and Nothing Noble’s songwriting doesn’t feel progressive in the traditional sense (moving the genre forward by trying new and previously unheard characteristics). It’s the unfortunate reality that you can look at an album as a standalone article, but comparisons to peers are always going to need to be made; this is where Modern Dismay falters. Progressive metalcore is packed with new and exciting bands, and unfortunately Modern Dismay doesn’t quite do enough to make itself stand out from the pack.
Nothing Noble’s first long-play record (yes millennials, when your Dad mentions an LP, that’s what it stands for) is enjoyable, and tracks like Modern Dismay, Rotting Away & Risen are on that knife edge where you can feel Nothing Noble are on the precipice of something special, but it doesn’t quite hit all the marks it needs to.
(3.5 / 5)
