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Review: Wolves at the Gate – Captors [Album]

Solid State Records // "A highly competent quintet who have a great future ahead of them in the melodic-hardcore game"

by Candi H, August 18th, 2012 and has been Read 953 times.
Last Edited by: Ffion Davies August 19th, 2012.

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Primarily Christian record label Solid State, is home to a number of post-hardcore and metal bands, most notably long-standing Floridians, Underoath and Pennsylvania’s finest, August Burns Red. 2011 saw the rising of Wolves at the Gate; a Christian post-hardcore band from Cedarville, Ohio who turned heads with their EP, We are the Ones.

With a name plucked straight from Acts 20 24-32 of the bible, it comes as no surprise that the quintet draw their inspiration and lyrics from their faith. Whilst this would put some people off, it's never swayed my opinion of a band – considering how many I’ve enjoyed listening to growing up without knowing they were Christian for so long! And after-all, lyrics are only part of the package. I’m here to listen to music and not pass judgment on how people live their lives - Just to clear that up!

Well 2012 has now seen the release of the Wolves’ first full-length under the Solid State label, Captors. After a few line-up changes, the formation now holds true with clean vocalist/guitarist Steve Cobucci, unclean vocalist Nick Detty, lead guitarist Jeremy Steckel, bassist Ben Summers and drummer Ben Millhouse. On production duties, they couldn’t be in more appropriate hands than Andreas Magnussen, having previously worked with Solid State alumni Oh, Sleeper and the now disbanded Gwen Stacy. So, Captors’ eleven tracks should demonstrate a solid (pun intended) grasp on the genre and elevate the band to join the leagues of those like Underoath who continue to be successful even after their 7-album milestone. Wolves’ kick off their debut LP with the ‘The Harvest’; a strong opener that engulfs you with metal-tinged riffs and gravelly vocal attacks that are nicely balanced with passionate and melodious crooning.

‘Awaken’ is a slightly different beast with a hardcore punk fire burning underneath the big melodies. The production’s great; every instrument perfectly balanced and getting equal moments in the spotlight. Vocalist Nick is particularly feral here; spitting and slicing with an Alexisonfire-esque vocal style - “When men cast their doubt upon your name, you are unchanging; still the immutable God” he defiantly roars in the track’s climactic ending. Of course, as I said, the words may be something that we can’t all relate to or want to relate to for that matter, but subject matter aside - the dual vocalists deliver with a power and adoration that’s hugely commendable. Much like many dual vocal rock releases I have heard this year, ‘Wolves are no strangers to the popular method; effortlessly bouncing between clean and unclean parts which when combined, add huge emotional punches into each track here.

WATCH // 'Awaken' Lyric Video

Nick and Steve sound confident enough playing these roles, none more so on the epic-sounding ‘Morning Star’ which hits hard in all the right places, both musically and emotionally. Its driving rhythm and relentless energy push it to the front of the pack for me. Within the standard “post-hardcore song” structure there are really nice breaks where softer moments shine and heavier breakdowns pound with a force so strong, you get caught in its wake.

‘Dead Man’ is one of the album’s more commercial efforts with a clean-cut sound that screams of radio play. Well, for this genre and in the ‘States for sure. The chorus is more obvious than others but is undeniably memorable - “I was once a dead man; a stranger with no home. I stood opposed to God himself and yet he pardoned me” Steve warmly sings whilst the guitar riffs strike; almost nu-metal like in their overly tidy style.

WATCH // 'Dead Man'

A restrained intro on ‘In Your Wake’ is deceiving as it quickly moves into a mighty double-kick drum rhythm with a low menacing bassline that seemingly thrives off of the unclean vocalist’s hoarse cries. ‘Slaves’ on the contrary is a sombre tune with a rousing acoustic intro that harbours equally affecting words – “Awoke my eyes, drew the first breath. New to the world but not to death. This plan devised in secrecy, may take my life or set me free” As the ‘story’ develops, the music and vocals both become more pained and expressive. “Set me free! Set me free! Hammer these chains and set me free!” the singer pleads like indeed his life depends on it. The feeling of being a “slave” to something is something we can all connect with and so despite it not being the strongest song musically, the emotion behind its words pulls at your heart strings.

WATCH // 'Slaves' Lyric Video

Captors brings out the big guns on ‘Step Out to the Water’ with cumbersome vocal harmonies and rolling drums, but the biggest upper-cut comes with ‘Amnesty’ which sounds like Gallows were in the studio at the time of writing. It’s a fast, angry and merciless machine of hardcore energy which is most definitely a highlight in the release’s second half. Although the pace and power on ‘Through the Night’ makes for a good contender. On the flip-side, ‘Safeguards’ and closer ‘Man of Sorrows’ are more commercial-esque tracks with big memorable melodies and lashings of clean vocals and twinkling guitar notes on top of reliable power riffs. There’s a sing-a-long line in the latter which comes over a little cheesy – “On and on and on we’re singing, singing out for all to hear us” but as a final goodbye it’s quite fitting in hindsight.

And so Wolves at the Gate are a highly competent quintet who have a great future ahead of them in the melodic-hardcore game, as it were. However, with so many bands and albums currently out there of the same format, it’s going to take a lot more for them to truly stand out in an overcrowded scene which has exploded this year especially; not to mention the added pressure of proving that they’re more than just a ‘Christian metal band’. Their wonderfully dynamic dual vocals are their best weapon and so if they can bring the music up to the same high level and develop their sound, they’ll be on the right track when the time comes for album number two.

Captors is out now

Worth Listening To...

• Awaken
• Morning Star
• Dead Man
• Amnesty