REVIEW: The Plot In You – First Born

Artist: The Plot In You
Album: First Born
Genre: Hardcore/Metal
Label: Rise

There seems to be a curious emphasis on birth and rebirth throughout this album, as evidenced by the somewhat bizarre opening (a crying girl rings her father to say that she’s pregnant) and song titles such as “The Father’s Seed” and “Miscarriage.” Whether the band set out to say something profound and prescient with this, I can’t quite tell, but musically, this is a pleasing album of spiraling vocal interplays and well-structured metal.

“The Father’s Seed” is the song with the aforementioned peculiar phone call, but once you’ve blinked at that, you’ll be happy to realize that this is a fine opener. The music is rapid and churning, the vocals hurried and intense. The verses feel rawer and more demanding than the melodic chorus, when they give way to stellar, clean singing and some anguished background effects. The whole impression is of displaced anger and unease, and the song affords a brief respite at the end before it unwinds and segues neatly into “Small Face.” This is a smooth and effective song. It opens heavy, laying thorough groundwork, before also choosing a more refined approach for the chorus. The clean vocals are set beautifully to solos and harmonies, which gives this a more general appeal. Considering the overwhelming subject matter, little flourishes like this lend the record more humanity, an afterthought for the sharpness of the extremities elsewhere.

“Bully” is energetic and thriving, building impressive momentum as the song dissolves from a swaggering, self-assured beginning into more frenetic, unhinged carnage. It’s well executed – the pace and timing is spot on – and very catchy, structured as it is around striking lyrical interplays. It reinvents itself a few times and fires in several directions before proceeding to a grounded halt.

With a title like “Miscarriage,” one could anticipate that this song might take things down a notch. Indeed, it’s a tad sluggish in its pace by comparison with the others, though it follows the same basic formula of laying base with solid guitars before unfurling something more aesthetic in the form of energetic solos and harmonies. The vocals in this are particularly good, a deep sense of authenticity managing to create a cutting resonance that hints at the gravitas of the subject matter. The song strays slightly with a predictable piano epilogue, but otherwise manages to be biting and memorable.

By contrast, “Rat Poison” then takes a firm route back to the dark side. It abandons the finery and unleashes ferocious guitars and growls aplenty, though this is at the expense of sounding fairly routine and archaic. A rhythmic final third reinvigorates the song and gives it a slight edge before it relents to its turgid ways. “Neighbours” is mixed beautifully, with a gorgeously layered opening of trembling instrumentation that pitches a vivid and poignant chapter. There’s a piercing sense of anguish to this song, with brash, unpredictable musical sways and singing that flickers dramatically from one style to the other. It exudes palpable unease and weaves a darker tone for the record.

“Filth” and “Unwelcome” follow this trend, before “Nothing Leaves This Room” brings an affecting heart to the musical onslaught. Worry not, it’s still heavy but imbued with a gentle centre that manages to capture more than any other song on the album the vacillating emotional intensity of the situation. The soaring verse and quiet, reflective strings that end the song are testament to this. “Dear Dad” chooses to end on the same meditative, poignant note, with samples of newsreels played under a mournful guitar. It’s a pause for thought and a quiet breather, making its way neatly to a dulled rhythmic verse that floats almost hauntingly beneath the rest. Thought-provoking and moving.

An album of contrasts that’s difficult to fault, First Born walks the fine line between competent and exceptional. On the one hand, it isn’t anything new or particularly innovative, the selected soundbites the extent of its deviation from the norm, but what it says it says well and with some rich guitars and gifted vocals to boot. Further, it must be said that these songs work well because they don’t outstay their welcome. Too many heavy albums get bogged down in musical semantics and forget that exemplary in song can be spelled c-h-o-r-u-s. This one makes a comprehensive point and moves on, and through frequently engaging tracks that ought to linger.

Score: 8/10
Review written by: Grace Duffy

James Shotwell
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