Heartlay – Attack & Agony (Album – Heartlay)
Genre/Influences: Industrial, crossover.
Format: Digital, CD.
Background/Info: French artist Aaron Sadrin has now been active since a few years under the Heartlay moniker. The band’s debut album “Close To Collapse” (2017) left a serious impact on me, revealing a huge potential mixing industrial- and metal music together. Aaron Sadrin and his acolytes are now back on track unleashing their second full length.
Content: “Attack & Agony” moves on where the previous album left off. This is pure sonic aggression featuring annihilating guitar riffs, speed rhythms and overwhelming electronics. Most of the vocals are clear and ultra-charismatic, but still featuring enraged passages. The work features 10 songs, which are progressively evolving towards even harder and merciless pieces.
+ + + : This album sounds much more than a simple confirmation! Heartlay is a talented project, which will appeal to industrial- and metal lovers. I especially like the osmosis between furious guitar riffs and transcendental electronic treatments. Several songs are progressively evolving towards a truly climax where the electronic parts become more pertinent. Just pay attention to songs such as “Torn In Two”, “Dirge” and “Hourglass (Save Me from Myself”) to realize the violence of the sound. I also like the slow progression in the tracklist, the hardest cuts places in the end.
– – – : Aaron Sadrin is also a talented singer, but I’m not a huge fan of his timbre of voice. I prefer the songs where he sings with more rage and shouts.
Conclusion: I know a lot of less talented formations and even so-called ‘leading’ bands dealing with similar styles and influences, which don’t have the genius of Heartlay!
Best songs: “Dirge”, “Torn In Two”, “Hourglass (Save Me From Myself)”, “Bloodright (No Way To Hide)”.
Rate: (8).
Artist: www.facebook.com/heartlaymusic
About Heartlay
Heartlay is the project of French musician Aaron Sadrin, set up in 2014 after a handful of self-released EPs, including “Injection” (2014) and “Remedy” (2015). “Attack & Agony,” reviewed here, followed the debut as Heartlay’s second full length, released on Anexile Music, with “We Are All Awake” issued on the same label in 2021. Nearly a decade after founding the project, Sadrin released Heartlay’s fourth album, “Sovereign Sore”, in 2023.
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