Unbroken - Life. Love. Regret. (1994)^{Release ID: 3084}

Metal subgenres were moving off in leaps and bounds in the 90’s despite the decade being what some consider the death of Metal. Metalcore was no exception. The still fresh style only had a few bands to its name, one of which was Unbroken. Unbroken put out a solid debut, but no one seemed to care about it.

Their follow up “Life. Love. Regret.” would also end up being their magnum opus and swansong. The band capitalized on their solid foundation and fine-tuned their style to create a strong album with a great mix of Metallic melodies and pure Punk aggression. The songwriting here is quite good, and it’s an easy listen front to back. Shout out to the lyrics as well, which are great introspections into a depressed mind.

I will say it sounds dated. This might have been a landmark release at the time, but it can only barely keep up with much of what has come out of the genre in the decades following. Unbroken walked so later bands could run.

Hardcore took on a new different form in the 1990s, embracing a bit of the mainstream while trying something different from what many expected to hear. More different was the metal influences in a few of those bands that lead to metalcore's creation. There are slow heavy riffs that go well with the speedy intensity. The ideal attitude was rebellious while caring for the world's environment, which lead to the straight edge scene. From the southwestern corner of the US, Unbroken became an important band for this decade with the amazing album Life Love Regret! Lasting throughout the first half of the 90s, the name Unbroken fit well for their straight-edge dedication and the rarity of passion. Guitars and shouting vocals chug through, the latter reciting struggles for hope in society. This actually fits well for the hard times of the pandemic when we all have to work together to make things better for the world. We need this band back together to motivate us with their hardcore attitude.

It's so amazing how vastly influential this album can be! They fulfilled a hardcore/metalcore legacy to be remembered by the bands they influenced, even after their split. Unbroken would have hardcore fans head over heels in love, and they would probably be like "Minor Threat who?" The passion and dedication comes from all the members, especially Dave Claibourn who shouts his lyrics with meaning. After their split in 1995, the band refused to reunite for anymore shows or albums. That is, until guitarist Eric Allen committed suicide and the band performed a charity show for his family. Over a decade later, they would spend the early 2010s playing multiple shows and donating to charities. Their final show was a 20th anniversary concert for this album. RIP Unbroken and Eric Allen...

Beginning "D4" is crushing sinister riffing, then it makes a slow transition to really grow on you. "End of a Life Time" is also so good, and the more hardcore fans might keep coming back more. "In the Name of Progression" is slightly more speedy and progressive, and it really hints at the metallic hardcore progression the band was shooting for. There's more hardcore madness to come...

"Razor" has sharp guitar work that can cut like a f***ing razor. "Final Expression" could've had some lyrics expressed better, but they still work well. Another favorite of mine is "Blanket", an intense unforgiving highlight!

But then it leads to an even better ending trio of songs, starting with "Recluse". Then "Setup" has the best setup for some of the most explosive music in this album. And soon comes the very best saved for last... The album ends with the 9-minute epic "Curtain" to shape up top-notch progressive hardcore/metalcore for a different metallic future. Everything is wrapped up with long feedback outro to pleasantly end the short yet wholesome journey this band has made. I know the more hardcore fans would certainly look forward to give this album a spin again.

Even though Unbroken is now just...broken, they remained a hardcore legend. This should be enjoyed by fans of hardcore and 90s metalcore. This band spawned a spark of hope for the hardcore rebellion!

Favorites: "End of a Life Time", "In the Name of Progression", "Blanket", "Setup", "Curtain"