Album Review: Code Orange - Underneath
Reviewed by Tim Finch
Before this review gets started I have lay my cards on the table. Up until this point I have not been Code Orange’s biggest fan. I've caught them on numerous tours with the likes of At The Gates and Trivium and at the odd festival here and there. Whenever I’ve seen them I’ve always come away feeling “I just don’t get them”. Then this past week the big magazines have given the new album, Underneath, 10/10 and five K’s respectively. Which makes me wonder, have I got them wrong all this time? Or maybe I just didn’t invest the time needed to get into this band? After all this is a band with Grammy nominations under their belt - they must be doing something right.
Thus when the advance copy of their new album ‘Underneath’ crossed my desk last week I jumped at the opportunity to give these guys a second chance. Was I wrong all this time?
The opening intro ‘(deeperthanbefore)' has a somewhat industrial feel, from the bleakness the haunting voice of a child screams “Let’s take a good look at you”, the atmosphere intensifies, the hairs stand on the back of your neck and you are thrown head first into this record.
Of the concept for the album the band state:
“It’s about facing the duality in ourselves as individuals and as a society in an overcrowded, overexposed, all-consuming digital nirvana. Everyone has a voice and no one’s seems to matter… plummet down the rabbit hole of your deepest fears, anxieties, and regrets to confront the monster that has been building underneath.”
The underlying theme and they way the band have written it makes it feel like a cinematic horror film is kicking off in your ears. The depth they have with their sound and indeed the excellent production, helps transport the listener into the story the band are portraying. ‘You and You Alone’ has a terrifying background voice giving the impression of a voice inside your head. How they have managed the effect is beyond me, but it’s a perfect way to make the listener feel part of the story.
Throughout the album the intensity and gritty industrial feel the bands brand of hardcore delivers is mesmerising. To the untrained, uninitiated listener it can horrify, for those more accustomed it can provide an escape. The pace changes with songs like ‘Who Am I’ and ‘Sulfur Surrounding’ which provide moments of calm in an otherwise full on wall of noise, a moment of calm in the eye of the storm if you will...
If you are looking for a dose of easy listening heavy metal then this album is probably worth stealing clear of. But what Code Orange have delivered in ‘Underneath’ is a gripping tale wrapped in noise and delivered with vigour. Just listening and investing time in the album, raised my heart rate considerably and left me perched on the edge of my seat waiting to see what happens next. If, like me, Code Orange have passed you by in their career so far 'Underneath' is an excellent place to start.
Code Orange release 'Underneath' on 13th March
