REVIEW: Mouth of the South – “Transparency” (2013)

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Mouth of the South
Transparency
Unsigned

 There’s a lot to say about a band whose material is all over the place, reaching different genres in the music spectrum, and Mouth of the South is definitely one of those bands. The Christian Texas metal band has been around for six years now, and in that time has played their fair share of festivals and tours, including a recent one with Christian death metal act Impending Doom, something deserving of recognition, and have allowed to EP’s to see the light of day, Of Dust and Manifestations. In such an amount of time this band hasn’t shown many signs of slowing down or stopping, but, in fact, have shown more signs of picking up the pace. With a still-growing fanbase and a good chunk of experience at hand, what can people expect from Mouth of the South?

The answer to that question is simple and can be summed up in one word: Transparency. See, Transparency is the title of the band’s debut full-length record, something many fans have been waiting on for a while now. With its release now going live, fans have gotten the chance to listen to it and, of course, enjoy it – but what should they and those who have yet to get their hands on it expect? A lot, to put it simply.

 Transparency doesn’t stick to just one niche or try to be a repetitive mess that just forces the same sound on you over and over again – in fact, this is a really exploratory album. I initially expected just another every-day metalcore release, but was proven wrong, and very wrong indeed. What I got was an album that really explored what the band could do, not slowing down but just pushing the boundaries of their skills and really becoming its own thing. I can’t call this a metalcore album, or a hardcore album, or really anything. This album jumps all over the place, at times resembling bands such as The Acacia Strain or The Plot In You, and at other times giving almost a replication of the sound that bands like Glass Cloud and The Tony Danza Tap Dance Extravaganza are popular for. This really works. It isn’t at all what you’d expect from Mouth of the South, I mean, you would definitely expect some rough and angry-sounding metalcore, growing increasingly heavier throughout the song and hitting hard with annihilating breakdowns and mesmerizing riffs – but don’t fret, because this album has those. Mouth of the South, without abandoning any bit of their sound, have only added on to the goldmine of a sound that they struck upon years ago.

When you listen to this album, expect a range of vocals pairing up about with those of The Plot In You’s Landon Tewers and instruments that, well, just surprise you. There’s no real way to define the instruments here because they don’t just stick to one thing. There’s aggression, there’s surprising melodies, and there’s even an acoustic song that really brings the album down to a calming breath and gives it a clear, sweet and deserving ending. As a whole, this album ties in together well and keeps a sort-of constant sound, but, as I said, does explore other sounds within each song. If you’re not into that kind of thing, this isn’t for you – but if you are, then I sincerely recommend buying it, or at least giving it a listen.

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