AS I LAY DYING’s most recent offering ‘An Ocean Between Us’ is their fourth journey into the studio since their arrival on the metal scene. The band have gone from strength to strength with each recording followed up by rigorous tour schedules and extremely intense live shows.

Artist: As I Lay Dying
Title: An Ocean Between Us
Type: Album
Label: Metal Blade

This album holds back nothing as you’re sent steam rolling into opening song and first single from this album ‘Nothing Left’. The San Diego quintet are really showing their mettle and brains with this song there’s more complexity and definitely more variation compared to earlier work they’ve done and it genuinely drags you in and sets you up for a ride on the As I Lay Dying roller-coaster.

Title track ‘ An Ocean Between Us’ is solid old fashioned As I Lay Dying and is worthy of a damn brutal pit and has a killer chorus with a plain cool melodious vocal line running through it that is guaranteed to be a sing-a-long hit.

Other songs worthy of a mention include ‘Comfort Betrays’ for its killer bit of solo riffage which is a blessing on any track also worthy of its heavy as hell bass drum driven rhythm which will cause miscarriages and brain damage at the correct volume. The other surprise with this LP was the inclusion of a rather delicate finger tapping piece known as ‘ Departed’ which has a searing crescendo a la EVH.

This leads you into the frantic and downright nasty ‘Wrath Upon Ourselves’ which is a sure-fire winner with anybody who loves to get their head down and get f**king low and has enough licks courtesy of guitarists Phil Sgrosso and Nick Hipa to keep the less ‘core’ of you occupied.

Album closer ‘ This Is Who We Are’ is another hook laden sing-a-long tune with a sweet as honey lead guitar line running through every chorus which fades to an elegant piano piece to calm you down and let you catch your breath.
So in summary this is a scorching, seething album filled with aggression, ambience, yet with delicate touches to round off the sound and enough shred to keep the majority of naysayers and doubters well and truly silent. Their best album to date. No argument.

LFTH Rating: 9/10

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