Divine Heresy - Bleed The Fifth

Artist – Divine Heresy
Album – Bleed the Fifth
Released – September 10 2007
Genre – Melodic Deathcore
Reviewed By – Nigga J

It’s been a long time since we last heard from ex-Fear Factory guitarist Dino Cazares after being controversially kicked out of his own creation. He perused a few other projects like Brujeria where he again had a fall out with his band members and left it spawning another inferior Latin metal spin-off of the band called Asesino. He was also a leader of one of the four teams of the Roadrunner United project but he has been very inactive since then.

Dino spend five long years preparing for a suitable comeback, and judging from the raw brutality of the opening track, looks like his patience has been rewarded! Dino is joined with formal Vital Remains and Hate Eternal drummer Tim Yeung and newcomer Tommy Vext in his new band Divine Heresy which has all the necessary elements to kick your ass!

The opening track is as heavy and fast as it gets and there is some really brutal double bass drumming here. Dino’s signature riffs perfectly accompany the drums and Vext’s brutal throat mashing bark gives the song another level of heaviness. It is the perfect music to listen to when your feeling rather pissed and want to destroy everything. Then comes Failed Creation, which starts of as brutally as the first song did but it has a few melodic interludes to which you can almost sing along. Failed Creation can be called the band’s sound as there are many tracks with similar style on the album.

The album is filled with versatility as tracks such as Rise of the Scorned and Royal Blood have a lot of black metal influence added by grand synth intros and then there is Soul Decoded which is pretty experimental and off the line. Impossible Is Nothing is very accessible and there is a lot of nu metal influence. Tommy’s melodic clean vocals steal the show here. The album ends with Closure which is a very radio friendly power ballad with 90% clean vocals and it proves how versatile this band can be.

Overall, Dino has managed to produce one of the most memorable riffs in recent years and Vext is a very good and versatile vocalist. Yeung is a brutal drummer and his double bass is like nothing you would have ever heard before. But then again, there is too much double bass in the album. They have overdone it. That makes it a little annoying. A few songs in the album are a bit boring after repeated plays. But all in all, this is a solid album and it strikes perfect balance between Dino’s familiar style and innovation (He plays solos! And they own you!) Bleed the Fifth is the next best thing to Demanufacture. Hell, if these guys continue this, maybe the next album will be better! If you are a fan of death metal and also like a bit melody in the songs, or if you like pre Archetype Fear Factory, get Bleed the Fifth. Satisfaction guaranteed!

Rating: 4/5

Tracklisting -

1. "Bleed The Fifth" – 3:06
2. "Failed Creation" – 3:37
3. "This Threat Is Real" – 4:23
4. "Impossible Is Nothing" – 3:55
5. "Savior Self" – 3:18
6. "Rise of the Scorned" – 4:54
7. "False Gospel" – 3:20
8. "Soul Decoded (Now and Forever)" – 4:01
9. "Royal Blood Heresy" – 4:42
10. "Closure" – 3:33