The Fire The Flood & The Minor Times

Lately, I've been hearing quite a few relatively young bands who are carrying on -- some with far greater savvy and comfort than others -- the legacy of Botch, Coalesce and the like. While The Fire The Flood and The Minor Times could both fall into that category, they play similarly rooted music in two very different ways.

The Fire The Flood's sound is centered on muddy, mid-paced metallic hardcore, and built with a consistent mix of churning, mangled guitar riffs, groove-heavy rhythms and garbled, mid-ranged screams. Yeah, the band's full-length debut, Truth Seekers, sounds pretty damn similar to a Coalesce record and might offend some purists (especially with its superfluous chugging breakdowns), but that's better than sounding damn similar to a Norma Jean record (not that there aren't similarities). The songs are tastefully concise, usually wrapping up within two minutes, and packed with enough riffs, tempos and noise to create some urgency and force. The Fire The Flood's straightforward delivery makes up for the lack of originality and is surprisingly convincing.

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The Minor Times, on the other hand, favors a more angular and meandering approach to groove-heavy, densely calculated metallic hardcore. (As in, they sound more like Botch.) It's more complicated and far more expansive, too, but it never gets so chaotic or busy or over the top that it lands in technical metal territory. As often as The Minor Times slips into jarring, chunky heaviness, they explore more expansive atmospheric sounds, mid-paced passages with twisting and turning strings of guitar notes, and rhythmic patterns that are beyond mediocre musicians. If nothing else, there's an intrigue behind the way the band successfully pieces together parts that seemingly don't blend. Plus, Brendan McAndrew's gruff, throaty screaming is awesome -- I swear I can feel it from time to time -- so there's a sense of intensity carrying through all of Summer of Wolves. This record has been a grower for me; the songs are more effective and memorable after four or five listens.

We can't call either band the originator or innovator of their chosen style, but both are worth a chance:

The Fire The Flood - Turmoil at the Gates of Heaven
The Minor Times - Casket City Lights

Get Truth Seekers here, and Summer of Wolves here.