Review: Tear Out the Heart – Dead, Everywhere
Artist: Tear Out the Heart
Album: Dead, Everywhere
Rating: 9.5/10
Track List:
1. “Dead, Everywhere”
2. “Feel Real”
3. “I’ve Got Secrets”
4. “Damage Control”
5. “The Rejected”
6. “Boiled Nails”
7. “Breaking Through”
8. “Viking Funeral”
9. “You Are No King”
10. “Error”
11. “School of Bleeders”
12. “The Epitome of Misery”
13. “Incomplete”
14. “Curse You”
St. Louis’ Tear Out the Heart should really need no introduction at this point but for those who don’t know, I will enlighten you. Signed to Victory Records in 2012, the band released their explosive debut album, Violence in the Fall of 2013. Your formal introduction to this band, this album was definitely named correctly because it featured aggression like few other metalcore bands before them. It also featured incredible guest vocal spots from Caleb Shomo (Beartooth) and Dan Marsala (Story of the Year). The band skipped their chance to play 2014’s Vans Warped Tour to finish up their 2nd full-length album Dead, Everywhere which was finally released just under 2 weeks ago. Vocalist Tyler Konersman went through a lot of personal hardships to get this record out and it made it that much more satisfying when it finally hit my ears, just under 3 weeks ago. Dead, Everywhere sees the return of the aggressive side of TOTH, while focusing quite a bit more on the melodic side of the band as well.
The album opens up with the title track, “Dead, Everywhere” a spoken-word intro that chills you to the bone. Especially the line “It’s not about the end, it’s where it all begins. We’ll carry on because a FIGHT is what let’s us know that we’re still alive. After all, we’re DEAD EVERYWHERE, Not just dead inside.” After your heart stops racing, you get punched in the face by “Feel Real”, which was the debut single from the album and has an official music video to accompany it. This is a track that lets you know that it’s okay to change. “The kids we were back then are LOST and FOREVER ABANDONED”. But it’s the line Konersman screams before the breakdown in this track that hits you the hardest… “LIFE DOESN’T FIGHT FAIR SO WHY SHOULD I?!”. What does this mean to you? It’s simple… everyone struggles. Everyone has the moments where things are going perfect and then something comes along and destroys that perfect feeling, leaving you broken-down and seemingly abandoned. You have to continue to fight for everything… regardless of what is thrown at you in life.
There’s 3 more tracks I want to talk about, the first is “I’ve Got Secrets”. This track is about how it feels when your past overwhelms you and you go into that state of never-ending, perpetual thought. It’s also about the fear that those “demons” will get out and ruin your life or make things harder on you. This is a way for Konersman (or whoever this song may be about/to) to say “Hey! I know I’ve got demons but it’s up to me to face them!” He’s telling the world to stay out of his business if they don’t need to be in it.
“Viking Funeral” is the next track I want to talk about. It’s an interlude of sorts but it bridges the previous track, “Boiled Nails” and the following track “You Are No King” together perfectly. It’s got an incredibly emotional feeling to it, it’s a track about knowing you’re nearing your end. All you want to do is end where it began, to “drown next to your loved ones”. This track, in it’s 3:09 length is one of the most emotional tracks on the album… and I wouldn’t even call it an official album track… as I said, it’s more of an interlude than anything… but it’s every bit as powerful as any other track on the album.
The final track I want to talk about is “The Epitome of Misery”. This song has a slow, keyboard-led intro that will grab your attention and then, as they tend to do… the track changes forms and becomes much heavier. This track is about true insanity, coupled with insomnia having your nightmares, your worst fears and everything that haunts you in constant contact with you. “WE HUNT DOWN THE HAUNTED, PARANOIA HAS GOT THE BEST OF ME, MY PERCEPTION IS DISTORTED, INSOMNIA HAS GOT THE REST OF ME!”. If you’ve had insomnia, you’ll know that these are the times when your thoughts are the worst… you can’t turn your mind off, no matter how you try. Everything that has ever plagued you is suddenly staring you in the face and all you want to do is escape.
Dead, Everywhere is so much more than an album. It’s Konersman wearing his heart on his sleeve, leaving himself vulnerable and hoping that the world will accept him for who he is. I, for one, have found comfort in many albums like this in the past… but there’s something about this one that pushes it to the next level. Please, do yourself a favor and pick up Dead, Everywhere out on Victory Records now! You’ll be glad you did! In the meantime, be sure to check out the official videos for “Feel Real” and “I’ve Got Secrets” below!
“Feel Real” (Official Music Video)
“I’ve Got Secrets” (Official Music Video)
Buy Dead, Everywhere
Tear Out the Heart is:
Tyler Konersman – Vocals – @TylerKonersman
Josh Spohr – Guitar – @JoshSpohr
Matthieu Murphy – Guitar – @MatthieuMurphy
Isaac Etter – Bass / Vocals – @isaac_etter
Matt Epstein – Drums – @mattoth8v