Review by Saxy S for Ice Nine Kills - The Silver Scream 2: Welcome to Horrorwood (2021)

I wish that there was more to say about this Ice Nine Kills album, a follow up to the bands 2018 The Silver Scream. But in all honesty, I found myself counting the ways in which Ice Nine Kills were ripping off of other metalcore bands. Now most of this work is done by the synth selection, which makes appearances during the heavy breakdowns that are not too dissimilar from Rings of Saturn, as well as the guitar work during “A Rash Decision”. There were also more than enough attempts to seem progressive with some Protest the Hero callbacks on tracks such as “Assault & Batteries”. Some good callbacks don’t get me wrong, it just so happens that these were not subtle inspirations and can make for a less than fulfilling experience, for whatever that is worth in Metalcore these days.

And beyond that, the production is a little bit weak; trigger bass pedals still don’t hide the fact that the low end feels quite weak. As for the sound, for an album that is trying to conceptualize Hollywood slasher movies, with the exception of a few Rings of Saturn-esque breakdowns, these songs feel very safe. Didn’t Dorian Electra manage to be disturbing far more effectively with My Agenda just last year? It is a fine enough album, just nothing special.