EP Review: Deference – False Awakening

Tyler H. March 29, 2017 212 Comments 136 views 0 likes

Everyone tends to think that bigger is better, when the reality is that a lot of the unknown, smaller aspects of life are what drives things into the mainstream. Logistically, this makes the most sense if you were to truly think about it as smaller entities don’t really have anyone that they’re trying to appease other than themselves. That being said, they still do try to appeal to the interests that larger entities have in hopes of either being noticed directly by them or gaining the mass appeal in the same fashion they did. In music, this is done by smaller bands quite frequently as most people tend to give new musicians a chance if they have a similar or relatable sound to their favorite artists. Enter in Southampton metalcore outfit Deference who have drawn favorable comparisons to other like-minded groups such as Architects and Northlane with their raw, hard hitting and beautifully crafted songwriting – which is only increased ten-fold on their new EP, False Awakening.

[tw-toggle title=”About Deference”]
Genre: Metalcore
Label: Unsigned
Release: March 31, 2017
Connect: Facebook | Twitter
Purchase: iTunes
[/tw-toggle]

The idea of False Awakening revolves around a man-made apocalyptic world and explores the loss and destruction that goes hand in hand with it and it achieves it through a meticulous attention to detail in the overall musicality, from a lyrical and instrumental standpoint. By crafting such strong composition, Deference introduce listeners to their sound and their world immediately with the no frills “Scavengers”, as the guitars open with a skittering sound that devolves into deep, brooding down-tuned heaviness, further coupled by harsh screams throughout. The music truly fits the idea of the tracks title with people being “Scavengers” and the toll it takes on people, once again showing off their innate attention to detail. “Insomnia” offers a slightly higher energy tone with the introduction of faster riffs, an atmospheric set-piece and sparsely used clean vocals and is followed up by “Departure”, a song that would do the likes of In Hearts Wake proud. This is a song that will undoubtedly give listeners the chills with its somber and haunting, melodic driven riffs and leads overlaid with raw, emotional screams and soaring choruses. “False Awakening”, which is the title track and served as the lead single contains more of the typical musings that modern day metalcore calls form while “Become Death Part 2” once again brings listeners fully into the apocalyptic world that Deference crafted.

DEFERENCE – ‘False Awakening’ (Music Video 2017)

“False Awakening” Single 2017 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WeAreDeference Twitter: https://twitter.com/DeferenceMusic Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deferencemusic Filmed & Edited By: Dave Sands (Lovesick Media) Production: Daniel Kerr (Avenue Studios)

One of the biggest fears many music lovers have is of bands that compare quite easily to the more notable acts of a specific genre. Many bands that tend to draw such comparisons either fall completely flat with the desire to replicate the sound wholly or take the experimentation and uniqueness too far, resulting in something that isn’t appealing at all. While Deference definitely do share a multitude of similarities some of the mainstay metalcore acts, False Awakening presents a world and sound that is solely unique to them. That doesn’t mean that they’re treading any new waters – it means that they took a carefully crafted sound that people have found a massive love and indulgence for and tied in their own uniqueness for a sound that’s clearly cultivated with passion – which is what we as music lovers truly want out of musicians.