Reviews list for Bleeding Through - This Is Love, This Is Murderous (2003)

Many people, including the band themselves, have call Bleeding Through strictly metalcore. But it feels like a degrading limit. They have so many influences from other metal genres like melodeath, thrash, and a bit of symphonic black metal. Before the emo invasion, a few bands showed the true meaning of METALcore, from the prominent pioneers Converge and Hatebreed to newcomers at the time Bleeding Through and Avenged Sevenfold, the latter falling into the heavy metal/hard rock trap.

This is the epic climax to Bleeding Through's discography, This is Love, This is Murderous! Even Metallica elitists as old as my parents would realize the enjoyable heaviness metalcore used to have. By the way, that cover art is one of the sickest yet simplest album covers I enjoy. When I was dissecting a heart in a science class a couple years ago, I stabbed it with my penknife and took a picture of it to recreate the cover art. Unlike the original, it was a wimpy penknife instead of that big-a** kitchen knife, and not much blood came out, but still worth a try. And while young emos are cutting their wrists with that knife, this band packs bigger punches to your eardrums.

The beginning track "Love Lost in a Hail of Gun Fire" opens with a sound sample, a similar beginning format to their debut. This sample is from the movie The Boondock Saints (not to be confused with that comic strip The Boondocks). Then the band starts their attack of powerful riff energy and Brandan Schieppati's fueled-up harsh vocals. This song features one of only a few instances of clean vocals in this album, sounding not too tough and not at all nasal, but somewhere in between. "Sweet Vampirous" is very short at one and a half minutes, and it's a little awkward. "Number Seven with a Bullet" has the best riffing of this album, possibly the best by the band, with some breakdowns along the way. "On Wings of Lead" is a tricky song if you're trying to avoid emo, sounding excellent yet cheesy at the same time.

"What I Bleed Without You" starts strong, but the strength bleeds out a little in its second half caused by the chorus riff. The title track starts a little weak with a breakdown that might've inspired deathcore before pick up their hardcore pace with speedy riffs and an uplifting-sounding chorus before returning to that breakdown, this time with stronger leeway making it much better than the first time. Great song, but not the best in quality. The next one, "City of the Condemned" is a total n*t-hammerer. It sounds like a crossover between Integrity and Emperor, demonstrating the power of metalcore riffs in both the metal and hardcore sides, instead of faceless shades of grey. "Mutilation" picks up more of their hardcore pace with the most brutal moment of the album at the one-and-a-half-minute mark. Though the song itself is mutilated by a weak chorus that doesn't affect too much of its score.

"Murder by Numbers" continues the band's black metal influences that's amazing, despite the weak but not too harmful breakdown in the middle. "Dead Like Me" is a great death metal-influenced metalcore highlight that might have some potential as part of a soundtrack for an R-rated action film. "Shadow Walker" was re-recorded from their debut album Dust to Ashes, but to be honest, I don't love this new version as much as the original (NOT the alternate version, that's the worst!). The album ends with one of my favorite metalcore songs ever, "Revenge I Seek". It begins with another Boondock Saints audio clip before unleashing a catchy breakdown followed by a fast riff. After all that metalcore glory, towards the end there's another deathcore-inspiring breakdown and a final chorus. That was some dark violent metalcore you've just listened to!

This Is Love, This Is Murderous remains a turning point in metalcore history, showing you what metalcore should be. When the band had their 4-year split-up, it looked like this album and would stay their best...until their epic comeback album Love Will Kill All. But until then, this album would reign with its amazing rage. This. is. METALCORE!

Favorites: "Love Lost in a Hail of Gun Fire", "Number Seven with a Bullet", "City of the Condemned", "Dead Like Me", "Revenge I Seek"