Review by Shadowdoom9 (Andi) for Future Palace - Run (2022)
I've seen the name Future Palace float around, especially when my brother was listening to one of their songs and I liked it enough to submit it to a Gateway playlist earlier this year (as of this review). Now I decided to check out and review one of their albums. I think I've gained the incentive after Saxy's review for their new album Distortion appeared on the site. Of course, the album I've chosen isn't that, but the one that starts with that song...
As the 2020s train rolls on, modern metal bands are not afraid to tear down the barrier between metal and mainstream even further. Future Palace has helped out with their metalcore-ish alt-metal style. With clear production and consistent sound, their second album Run is a lot of fun! (cheesy rhyme, I know)
"Paradise" is that song I've hinted at above. Nice glitch-ish effect to go with this female-led alt-metal/rock sound. Once we get into "Dead Inside", I thought it was going to lead into Trivium-esque melodic metalcore of last decade, but then I'm reminded that this is a different band with the charging vocals of Maria Lessing, placed together with the powerful guitarwork of Manuel Kohlert and drumming of Johannes Frenzel. The members have all done their part well and in-sync. "Flames" sounds catchy and exotic at the start before switching into strange electro-trap verses. Fortunately, the strong rock-on chorus makes sure this song is impossible to hate, especially when it gets heavier in the bridge. The heavy punky balance is exemplified further in "Locked". I suspect songs like that are a key influence to the heavier tracks in Linkin Park's From Zero.
Next track "Heads Up" has taken some ideas from the more recent releases of Bring Me the Horizon, plus some of the greatest vocal aggression from Maria. Then things slow down in "Sleep Tight" as Maria sings through a dark dream, allowing listeners a chance to unwind after all that heaviness. "Defeating Gravity" brings the heaviness back in a blend of catchy and vicious. "Roses" can sound so melancholic and malicious, sometimes at the same time. This dynamic track is one of, if not THE, best of the album. However, other songs may fight for that position...
Case in point, the following track "Wounds" has some rawness as the lyrics warn you about internal weak links of a relationship. "A World in Tears" puts forward the band's ideas into a dreamy state while jumping through another strong chorus. With "Loco Loco", the listener is pulled through between melody and heaviness. The finale "Fever" reminds you of how fun modern metal can be. Rather than going all-out heavy, a dance beat leads to upbeat instrumentation for a great catchy ending.
Run is filled with hooky energy that is bound to make you up for more rounds. No matter how much electronica/hip-hop is added to their rock/metal sound, even the classic metalheads can make their turn into the modern scene here. An answer to the question of what a heavier rapping-free take on Linkin Park's From Zero would sound like!
Favorites: "Dead Inside", "Flames", "Heads Up", "Roses", "A World in Tears", "Fever"