Pain Principle, Waiting for the Flies
With their debut album for Blind Prophecy Records, Pain Principle’s Waiting for the Flies eviscerates the listener with the destruction of a hand grenade. Citing influences such as Death, Pantera and Slayer, the band’s own brand of thrash is quite impressive. Heavy, bruising riffs are combined with technical leads and machine gun like drumming for a layered listening experience.
I’ve listened to this album for a couple of weeks now and I just can’t find anything about it that I don’t like. From the bruising breakdowns to the full boar death blasts the band impresses in every aspect of the album. Hell, they even mix in some great melody for a few choruses that produces and infectious groove not soon forgotten after the album is done. The guitar work is amazing to say the least with each player able to shift from simplistic, barbarian like riffs to technical leads in a heart beat. Mike Mazzonetto’s drum work is damn near flawless — the dude just has everything in his arsenal. Kevin Bullock’s deep, gruff vocals (he has a decent range showcased on this album) round out a hell of an album, complimenting the music perfectly.
The Death of Johnny Beans
A short instrumental with a great Pantera influenced lead starts off the album.
Body Farm
After that short one minute intro, Pain Principle hit quickly with melodic riffing and groove filled drums. Bullock displays his range in just the first minute, hitting guttural growls just as easily as he does his more mid-range main delivery. This is one hell of a catchy track to open up an album with. Wow.
Martyr System
Another set of big, melodic riffs and thundering drums keeps the pace moving along briskly. The pace is picked up a notch at Bullock’s vocals join in. Thrashing bursts from the drums kick in periodically leaving the listener dazed before letting up to let the riffing step to the forefront. The lead on this one is amazing, adding a great touch to the song.
What’s Left Of It (The Feast of Rats)
A nice crushing opening to “What’s Left Of It” greets the listener. There’s plenty of groove to this album thus far as the band mixes melodic death metal, metalcore and thrash into a seamless monstrosity. The chorus of this one reminds a bit of a track from Caliban’s The Opposite from Within. Yet again, another amazing lead shreds in the latter half of the track.
And Now, A Word From the Living
I love the opening riff to this one. It’s one of those riffs that you’re immediately recognize in the future. It’s accompanied by driving drums for a bit before shifting into a galloping series of riffs and drums. This very well could be my favorite song on the album due to just the opening riff alone.
Behind The Broken
Utter destruction awaits you on the uber aggressive “Behind The Broken.” The track starts off with devastating riffs before diving into a churning mass of driving drums and thrashing guitars. Pain Principle also throw in a catchy chorus for good measure, creating another stand out track.
All But The Dying
Another great riff starts off this next track as Bullock comes in with a more cleanly delivered bit of vocal work that we haven’t heard yet on the album. This is an interesting track full of layers and a dynamic mix of vocals.
In Dim Light
“In Dim Light” sees the band playing with a more chaotic sound. Bullock’s deep, guttural growl and the driving drums shove this one through the speaks with ease. It combines moments of driving insanity with melodic choruses to create a nice mix of influences.
What The Dead Whisper
Driving drums start the next track, mixing with melodic riffs. There are repeated bursts from the drums and Bullock delivers lower than in previous tracks. There’s a great lead at the two minute mark.
Waiting for the Flies
The title track ends the album perfectly. It starts with some creative drumming as melodic guitars fade in. Bullock’s initial bit of vocal work is cleanly sung through some sort of vocalizer adding a new sound to the band’s already varied blend.
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Pain Principle’s Waiting for the Flies is a great blend of melodic death metal, metal core and heavy rock influences ranging from Pantera to Death. While aspects of those bands can be heard periodically through the album, Pain Principle doesn’t lean on them like a crutch, but incorporates them into their own brand of metal. This is one of those albums that’s just simply fun to listen to. I’m sure I’ve probably already played it once too often, but I just can’t get enough of it.
Favorite Tracks:
All of them.
Additional Notes:
n/a