REVIEW: A Night in Texas – Digital Apocalypse [2024]
Artist: A Night in Texas
Album: Digital Apocalypse
Much in the spirit of A Night in Texas’ long-awaited full length record Digital Apocalypse, it’s best to dive right into it without a lengthy introductory monologue or a paragraph spent waxing poetic about a tangential topic to segue into the album’s discussion. Deathcore is back. It’s been back–and anyone who still casts aspersions on the genre’s fortitude or current state is either delusional, woefully misinformed or both. In the meat of that current movement exists a group of bands that channel from both the blistering traditional (or “OG”) deathcore sound based in brutal death metal and hardcore and the newer school of higher-produced, technically precise acts. On either side are the opposing extremes–the MySpace revival vs the weird, groovy/technical amalgam of genres that has become synonymous with deathcore. Of the three parties, A Night in Texas establish themselves firmly in the first group, drawing upon contemporary production and technicality and instilling it in a medium of murderous blast beats and raunchy breakdowns straight outta ’08. This isn’t new for A Night in Texas–barring some adventurous (though often underwhelming) aspects of their releases from the early 2020s, the band has been a pivotal, well-balanced driving force for the genre. What is new for A Night in Texas is the piercing precision and pure power they provide throughout the entirety of their highly anticipated forthcoming release. Digital Apocalypse is a fun, energetic and eviscerating experiences that touches on all the essential stalwarts of deathcore, demonstrating excellence and mastery within many of them–which, at the end of the day, is what A Night in Texas do best. Briefly, Digital Apocalypse might not reinvent the wheel, but it remains an excellent example of the genre’s strongest points in an easily accessible and boundlessly entertaining bundle.
Since their inception–and especially since their breakout EP, Invigoration–A Night in Texas have been synonymous with instrumental excellence. Often placed in the same realm as bands like AngelMaker, Crown Magnetar and more, the band have long been a source of exemplary musicianship within the genre–and this doesn’t change now. From the lacerating throes of album opener “Programmed to Suffer” through sprawling, cinematic cut “The Chamber” and pummeling, ten-ton heavyweight slab “Apex of Agony,” the band demonstrate their dedication to mach-speed percussion, frantic fretwork and groovy, grisly bass. “Mechanized Genocide” is another example of high-speed intensity meeting head-on with meaty, manic aggression. Lacerating riffs lace betwixt layers of machine-gun blast beats admixed with ten-ton breakdowns. The album’s closer offers a rare snippet of melody, though still ultimately dominated by devolving chaos and crushing aggression. The band finely and confidently strides the line between speed and primal brutality without sacrificing intensity throughout the runtime of the release–and it is in large part to their remarkable instrumentation that they succeed in making their record remarkably intense, remarkably consistent and remarkably easy to listen to.
On Digital Apocalypse, we got our first full taste of their new vocalist Sam Cameron. Cameron’s work throughout Digital Apocalypse is, plainly, excellent. Raw, furious high screams dominate side-by-side alongside ferocious low bellows and raw mid-range yells. The track’s opener is figuratively (and also, in a way, literally) a sample-platter of his talents, in which no stone is un-turned. Throughout lengthier cuts, Cameron’s range is expanded upon, delivering continuous and consistent intensity and energy throughout the song–“The Chamber” is another excellent example of this. Where the band have met with some criticism is the lyrical content–especially in early single “Welcome to the Gulag,” which offers politically fueled commentary–a juxtaposition against the band’s usual anti-religious lyricism. Even with some lyrical missteps, the band’s music remains unrelenting with an incredible vocal element to hone in on. Cameron works excellently with his soundscape on any given song–there are no shortage of vocal highlight reels that keep songs fresh without making them feel like a sterile collection of pointless vocal gymnastics, which has become an unfortunate norm in the genre and its adjacent subgenres.
A Night in Texas’ triumphant return to form is just that–both triumphant and a return to form–striking up well-deserved comparisons to their previously acclaimed records The God Delusion and Invigoration. Digital Apocalypse is a stunning and intense record that is as monstrous as it is fun and easy to get lost in with relatively few moments of relative placidity or tediousness. With this as their new baseline, the future–both near and far–is sure to be bright for one of Australia’s most intense deathcore exports.
8/10
For Fans Of: Crown Magnetar, Enterprise Earth, AngelMaker
By: Connor Welsh
