Recommendation: Animal Giant

Cleveland metalcore outfit Inhale Exhale, formerly of Solid State fame, have recently called it quits and will be playing their final show at the Alliance Festival in Pittsburgh, PA in August. This was a blow for me right in the childhood, because Inhale Exhale was one of the very first metal bands I ever listened to. Their debut with Solid State, “The Lost, The Sick and The Sacred” was like my starting pistol to find more heavy music. I will always think of them fondly.

Fortunately, founding member John LaRussa has just the thing to dry up our tears: an EP of his very own under the name Animal Giant. “The Glory.”

All by himself, it seems John is capable of writing metal on par or better than anything Inhale Exhale ever released during their career. The sound though is considerably different. There is a fair amount of chugging, but varied rather than one-note palm mutes we hear from most bands these days, and often juxtaposed against hot, thrashy riffs or thick, ugly chords. The entire album is full of variation, from the hardcore drum beats in the verses and angelic melodies in the choruses to the excellent vocal performance. John’s own growls really lend to the progressive ambiance that the album exudes.

The transitions are really like a nice handshake: though sudden, they breeze comfortably into one another, thanks heavily to the constantly shifting, always beautifully layered guitars. The harmonies contrast starkly against the much dirtier rhythm chords. As huge as this EP is, sixteen minutes is all we get, which should only turn the heat up under LaRussa’s haunches. I want to hear more.

"The Glory EP" is available on Bandcamp for whatever price you wish, but believe me, it's worth paying for.

http://animalgiant.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/animalgiant