REVIEW: The Acacia Strain – You Are Safe from God Here [2025]
Artist: The Acacia Strain
Album: You Are Safe from God Here
Every problem is a nail if your hammer is big enough.
What band—especially a band in the vein of metalcore, deathcore and associated -core subgenres—has been running twenty-plus years and has only managed to get better with each release? If you were thinking The Acacia Strain, you’re onto something, because they’re about the only act that comes to mind that fits the bill. Since the band’s inception in 2001, just about each release has been hailed by many as “their best yet,” whether it was the explosive aggression of Wormwood, the brooding, groovy desolation of Death is the Only Mortal, It Comes in Waves’ harsh and blistering soundscape or—and most recently—the unabashed blend of brazen hardcore and mammoth death metal that defines the band’s thirteenth studio album, You Are Safe from God Here. A craven, gnawing and voracious blend of fast, noisy hardcore and eviscerating deathcore, doom and sludge and whatever else the Massachusetts metal outfit found in the kitchen sink, You Are Safe from God Here is a release that transcends the various styles, tones and attitudes The Acacia Strain have embodied over their two-decade-plus tenure to give listeners a record that is a strong contender for their finest, most comprehensive and immolating to date.
The Acacia Strain are one of those bands that transcend genre classification; if you put a gun to my head and asked me to pigeonhole them into one genre, you’d be cleaning up a ton of brain matter. Somewhere in the murky spectrum between heavy hardcore, metalcore, death metal and sludge you’ll find You Are Safe from God Here. Most of the record’s run time (by number of tracks, at least) is spent fast and pissed. From the harsh onslaught kicked off by “eucharist I: BURNT OFFERING” through “THE MACHINE THAT BLEEDS,” “ACOLYTE OF THE ONE” and “I DON’T THINK YOU ARE GOING TO MAKE IT,” The Acacia Strain is propelled by fast, precise percussion from Matt Guglielmo. Guglielmo effortlessly oscillates from fast, hardcore-and-punk inspired patterns to trudging, plodding breakdowns chunkier than ten tons of lard. These break-neck changes are highlighted by outstanding fretwork from Devin Shidaker and Mike Mulholland. The range these two possess can be best described by comparing the unstoppable-force speed and ferocity from the riffs and breakdowns abundant “THE MACHINE THAT BLEEDS” against the unmovable-force smothering weight of closing epic “eucharist ii: BLOOD LOSS.” On the latter, the band once more dive back into the headspace that brought us cuts like “Observer” and the entirety of the Failure Will Follow LP from 2023. Here, sludgy waves of thick dissonance drown the listener with snaps and booms of Griffin Landa’s bass adding even more heft. This track occupying the same release as quick, barn-burning numbers like “AEONIAN WRATH” and “HOLY MOONLIGHT”—wrought with breakdowns though they may be—adds even more credibility (if you needed it) to the notion that very few, if any, bands in this space have the dynamism that The Acacia Strain boasts.
It wouldn’t be a complete review if I didn’t spend at least a little time on the outstanding vocal and lyrical effort put forth by Vincent Bennett. In the same way that it’s incredible to think that The Acacia Strain are 24 years old (collectively) and putting out what can be easily argued is their best music, it’s stunning to think that Bennett sounds the best he’s ever sounded on You Are Safe from God Here. Lyrics that are grim in their poetry while still managing to be nigh unfathomable in their raw, blistering anger delivered by gnashing roars and grisly low bellows. A personal favorite here is “I DON’T THINK YOU ARE GOING TO MAKE IT,” though it is difficult to pick a song that lacks in its vocal delivery or pointed, powerful lyricism. Pained shrieks that sound like someone record auto-cannibalism reign supreme on “MOURNING STAR,” while the guest appearance (and “GOD’S HATE” mosh call) on “THE MACHINE THAT BLEEDS” is enough to bring a smile to just about any listener’s face. It’s hard to even say more—because what more do you need to read? Bennett sounds incredible and his writing, similarly, is at its peak.
There’s a reason you can post or share your The Acacia Strain record ranking and get a million different objections in return (technically, you could get up to 6 billion unique responses)—with none of them being really all that wrong. With that said, I think the correct answer going forward is going to have to include You Are Safe from God Here damn near the top. With songs that wouldn’t sound out of place on Continent and enough of the low’n’slow, sludgy and doom-laden material to appease those who love that side of the band the most—even if does feel a somewhat jarring contrast to close the album with—it’s damn hard to find measurable, objective fault with the band’s thirteenth full length entry. Even as someone who finds themselves worn a little thin of the band’s sludgy, stoner and doom antics, there isn’t any denying that the record’s closing cut is powerful. Simply put, The Acacia Strain absolutely dominate on You Are Safe from God Here, and while it isn’t all too surprising that they still got it, it is surprising just how much of “it” they pack into this record.
9.5/10
For Fans Of: Harms Way, No Cure, Gates to Hell, Fit for an Autopsy, On Broken Wings
Connor Welsh
