Album Review: Miss May I – Shadows Inside

JT May 29, 2017 205 Comments 492 views 0 likes

It’s human nature to strive for excellence. No matter how tough a feat, or what we’ve accomplished in the past, it’s only natural to push yourself towards progression and betterment. The world of music is no stranger to this, in fact they’re natural bedfellows. Bands are constantly trying to hone their craft with each album they release, constantly pushing themselves to their absolute limits to always improve and close in on the “perfect” material. This is more than obvious on Miss May I’s latest release, Shadows Inside and for such a tenured group as themselves, it’s truly the epitome of excellence. Throughout the years Miss May I have had no lack of impressive releases. From album to album you can hear slight variations to their sound and certain hints of experimentation, which have helped to keep their sound fresh and prevented it from bordering on played out or stale. Even though each record has had its own merits in these traits, it hasn’t been until now that they had truly released such a bold, impressive, and concise album from front to back.

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Genre: Metalcore
Label: SHARPTONE
Release: June 2nd, 2017
Connect: Facebook | Twitter
Purchase: iTunes | Google Play
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Miss May I – Shadows Inside (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)

MISS MAY I – SHADOWS INSIDE – From their New Album – SHADOWS INSIDE: http://smarturl.it/MMIShadowsInside Subscribe: https://smarturl.it/SharpToneRecs NEW MUSIC & MERCH HERE – https://www.missmayimusic.com/ & http://sharptonestore.com/ LYRICS Revived, Recreated Every single burn I still feel it Contaminated but I don’t need the cure No blood, No redemption Every single lie

It’s not unheard of to improve a certain aspect or two, from one record to the next, but to advance in every detail is truly rare. The band has never sounded better. The musicianship has grown to massive heights in every sense of the word. It’s hard to miss the influences of classic metal stylistically in the guitars (almost remnant of the golden days of bands such as Metallica, Iron Maiden, or even Black Sabbath), as they are prevalent throughout. The drumming provides the perfect backbone to every track, whether it’s a roaring double-bass or splash of the cymbals, they perfectly accentuate each and every note. The bass, although not completely lost in translation, wasn’t in the limelight as much as it could have been. However this is not a negative connotation, as the bass gives both the drums and guitars an extra supercharged boost. There were moments in songs where you could almost believe Levi’s throat may have been left bleeding, as he holds nothing back with his screams. Whether it be guttural growls, or epically high pitched screams, he truly gave it his all. To pair anyone else’s clean vocals with Levi’s screams, other than Ryan Neff, would be foolish. Neff’s cleans soar over the loudest music, yet almost croon on the softest.

The record starts out fast and heavy with the title track, “Shadows Inside”. This song is metalcore at it’s absolute finest. Massive guitars, no lack of blast-beat drumming, no cleans to be found anywhere except the chorus, and even an impressive solo for good measure. A song such as “My Destruction” truly exemplifies some of the previously mentioned classic metal influences with it’s lead guitar playing a triumphant, almost solo-esque intro. Neff is given the chance to truly shine on the entire album, but there’s no greater examples of this than the tracks “Never Let Me Stay, and “Crawl”, where Levi steps back on vocal duties allowing Neff to take the lead. “Casualties” and “Lost In The Grey” , may be some of the heaviest songs Miss May I have ever released both instrumentally and vocally. Closing out the album is “My Sorrow” is a hard hitting track, yet has no lack of melody. A fitting closer to such a beautifully intense album.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uY2jLCYIZg0

This truly is one of the greatest albums Miss May I has released so far in their amazing and accomplished career. It is more than obvious that they have poured their rock’n’roll, heart and soul into each and every intricate detail of this release. Whether you’re a fan of crazy, in your face heaviness, a metal reminiscent of a past era, or a slower and softer metalcore element, Miss May I’s latest effort will leave no one hanging. This record will ultimately be a juggernaut of a contender when it comes to competing with any other metalcore release this year when it comes to the charts. And this will be extremely hard to top.