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Speaking to us prior to its release, guitarist and co-vocalist of EMPLOYED TO SERVE Sammy Urwin promised fifth album Fallen Star is a more dynamic record than its predecessor, the titanic Conquering that saw them leveling arenas alongside GOJIRA and continuing their metamorphosis into bona fide metal heroes. Fallen Star arrives with the weight of expectation behind it, and Treachery’s opening moments are about as full-throttle as EMPLOYED TO SERVE can get, a single snare hit leading into furious riffs, blast beats and Urwin doing his best Tom Araya impression. It’s off to a flying start.
The promised dynamism is right behind it, too. Immediately following such a scorching open is the title track, which dials back the aggression and ramps up the melodicism. Lyrically dealing with watching someone you care about burn out without being able to help them, or seeing them not learn from past mistakes, it’s initially morose but as with the album’s themes overall, there’s still a call to break through those bad habits and overcome life’s challenges. It’s an interesting, and bold, choice for only the second song on the album, an expansive balladeering epic, but ETS know exactly what to do next – throw a barn burner in the mix.
Atonement features the first of the record’s big hitter guests, LORNA SHORE’s Will Ramos making all manner of goblin noises as you’d expect but also throwing in a full-on CREED chorus right at the end as he takes over from Sammy for the finale. It’s a soaring chorus, showing the band getting ever more comfortable with penning arena-sized hooks. There’s also an embracing of other sounds within metal, further afield than they’ve been before, particularly on Last Laugh that channels HIM and UNTO OTHERS in its goth metal stomp, while also featuring SVALBARD’s Serena Cherry as she lends her ethereal tones to a haunting chorus.
Closer From This Day Forward deserves special mention for this too, as although its opening minutes are trademark ETS groove, its finale expands hugely, flourishes of synth building atop blast beats into a quasi-symphonic ending that’s hugely satisfying, and a market of just how far the band have grown between albums, let alone from their beginnings as a scrappy, chaotic hardcore band. Of course, that evolution won’t be for everyone, which they’d surely acknowledge, but ETS have continually refused to make the same album twice, always pushing and evolving from album to album.
That’s what makes Fallen Star such a triumph. It retains that core DNA of the band, the groove and seismic riffs, along with Justine Jones’ ferocious bark while Sammy Urwin brings his own growl or gruff singing to the mix. That core identity is writ large across Fallen Star, and it’s hugely expanded on too. Far more melodic and experimental than they’ve ever been, without losing focus or a sense of self, Fallen Star is a huge achievement for the band and one that should, by rights, finally get them headlining the arenas they’ve proved they can dominate.
Rating: 8/10
Fallen Star is out now via Spinefarm Records.
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The post ALBUM REVIEW: Fallen Star – Employed To Serve appeared first on Distorted Sound Magazine.
