Review by Saxy S for Blessthefall - Gallows (2025)

Full disclosure, Blessthefall are not my cup of tea when it comes to metalcore. When I was growing up with the genre, I stayed closer to the groovier side of the genre with bands like Trivium, All That Remains and Shadows Fall rather than the more scene side. A lot of these bands gained prominence during the 2010s while I was in university, during my metal purge. GALLOWS by Blessthefall certainly feels nostalgic for that time frame of bands like Silverstien and Pierce the Veil. And you know what? For a pretty short piece of run-of-the-mill 2010s metalcore slop, it actually isn't that bad.

I enjoy how songs like "Venom" and "Y.S.A.B." aren't totally generic buildups/breakdowns and choruses within this subsect of mainstream metalcore. The choruses themselves can be quite catchy like "Wake the Dead" and "Light the Flame", provided you can tolerate Beau Bokan's vocal timbre, both in his screaming and singing. The foundations are extra djent-y and sound like a lot of fun, especially the occasional melo death riff that sneaks it way in between the palm muted riffage. And the record does not become too redundant all at once. Guest features from Story of the Year on "Fell So Hard, Felt So Right" and Alpha Wolf on "Drag Me Under" break up the early runs of similar sounding key centers and tempos. While the closer "This Ends With Us" has some decent brooding to wrap up the record.

I mean, it's hard for me to not enjoy GALLOWS from Blessthefall. Yeah I doubt it will end up in my year end rotation for 2025, and the record has a couple of duds, but the few moments that stand out are a shining example for the target audience of a time once passed. For a style of music that I don't frequent/enjoy very often, this one caught me off guard.

Best Songs: Wake the Dead, Drag Me Under, Light the Flame