Tetrarch-Freak (2017)

 Post #393

Tetrarch spent their time from 2013 to 2017 relocating (they moved from Georgia to L.A.) and also reinventing themselves. Their early EPs might have fallen comfortably inside the 'metalcore' subgenre, but by the time they dropped Freak it was clear they'd discovered a new calling and were headed in a  new direction...

The album opens with the title track, "Freak"- an aggressive hardcore song that puts some of their new formula on display. Diamond Rowe's guitar leads emulate an eerie vibe that seems to channel Korn's Brian 'Head' Welch. Vocalist Josh Fore pours forth emotion with ever line. His voice could be compared to Chester Bennington when singing melodically,  or Corey Taylor when screaming. If this sounds like a promising formula of sounds for a metal-head, that's because it is! Plus you have to love the bridge lyric: "In the darkness the strange becomes ordinary..."

The next track, "Spit", takes them a step closer to Korn-esque alt-metal, as Fore employs new inflections in his vocal delivery, bringing comparisons to Jonathan Davis to mind. However, as the 3rd track, "Pull the Trigger" unfurls, we are once again blown away with an assault of aggressive metal. 

The rest of the album continues in this fashion, swaying back and forth between hardcore, brutal metal riffs, and eerie, haunting melodies. Drums and bass that bludgeon the senses relentlessly, guitars that can shred in one moment and entice the mind the next, and a masterful blend of melodic and hardcore vocals, this band gives us a great metal album with Freak. If you crave this blending of angst and aggression, then please do yourself the favor of checking out this band!

Their Music video for the title track:

Other recommended tracks from Freak:

-Pull the Trigger

-Oddity

-Break the Trend* (this is a personal favorite- very close in style to their previous metalcore/thrash sound)

-Torn Apart (a little softer sound on this closing track, but still very dark in the pictures painted both in sound and lyrics)

Watch for my review of their new album Unstable coming soon!