The Casino Brawl is a hardcore project out of the UK, and let me tell you, they are coming at us with the fury of a hailstorm. Like it or not, these boys are going to be heard, and they are out for blood. I have spent the better part of this last month testing the limits of my stereo with their brutal ballads and spine shattering melodies, and I could not be more pleased with the results of their debut album Shades; Directions. In a sea of hit and miss artists trying to snag of piece of this ever-so-crowded genre, I truly believe The Casino Brawl have what it takes to stand out in the crowd. The only question is will these boys be able to send their slaughtering sound waves over the vast ocean to the states to make an impact on a country that is suffocating in a mob of a thousand hardcore bands who are all bashing heads to make it to the top? Only time will tell, but I think with a solid record and a little bit of luck, it won’t be long before we are hearing a lot more out of TCB.

Shades; Directions starts off with a track called “Time and Tide” and immediately you fall victim to their earth shattering riffs, blasting drum kicks and hellacious hooks. They are relentless with their music and never seem to lose their momentum. Track after track is one unyielding blood bath of ferocious, finely tuned anthems after another. Track three, “L is for Liars,” comes at you with more fury than an angry grizzly bear, and throws a maelstrom of melody in the mix to soften the blow.

As you make your way through the album, you will find that their sound really keeps you intimately involved with every song they throw at you. Honestly, if you just let the record play, you won’t find one disappointing track. “You Can’t Save Them All” opens on a super catchy guitar riff, and leads into an equally captivating set of melodies and breakdowns that will really set you off. “That, is Tosca’s Kiss” opens up a little slower than the others with Johnny heading the assault with a simple serenade, that eventually leads to an onslaught of – you guessed it – heavy breakdowns and wicked melodies. A very cool song.

Their closer, “A Tower of Silence,” is anything but that. Sure, they start of with a simple guitar line that lulls you into a false sense of security, but I promise that tower comes crashing down; and I’m very glad it does because these boys do heavy very well. This was a good track to end on. Now that’s rock n roll – well, kind of.

I am very proud to say The Casino Brawl have earned a cozy little spot in my library of music, and a relatively high one at that. Shades; Directions is a must buy record for followers of the hardcore scene. Fans of Underoath, Oh Sleeper, and Bury Tomorrow are sure to find TCB to be a top ten record of the year. I only see good things for these boys, and hope to hear much more out of them in the future. Two thumbs up!

5.0/5