L.I.F.E. (short for Left It For Everything) is the new and hard-hitting EP from melodic metalcore outfit High Rise. It’s a great and substantial little listen, with a good pace, and it will definitely leave you wanting to come back for more.
High Rise have a good balance between melody and aggression in the five tracks, with plenty of opportunities for singing along, and for you to bang your head in time to the music. Opener Hands Untied is certainly a good example of this, and also helps to start the EP off with a bang. The hammering guitars and drums at the start really grab your attention, and the harsh vocals that come in a short while later are well-punctuated and hard-hitting, so it’s the perfect recipe for an in-your-face opening. The clean vocals in the chorus juxtapose well against it, and it’s such an earworm that you’ll soon find yourself singing along to it after only a few listens. Third track Reborn is also a great inclusion, and the repeated half-chanted, half-screamed vocals in the latter half of the song is surely made for a crowd chanting along with them in a live environment.
Admittedly the EP does end a little abruptly, with closer Vultures coming to a somewhat unexpected close – the band keep up the fast pace right until the end and stop as a unit. Although it sounds impressive, it does feel like L.I.F.E. has been left a little bit open-ended and it leaves you wanting more – but I expect they’ll pick it up right from there with their next release!
8/10
