Artist: Dynasty
Album: Truer Living With A Youthful Vengeance
Release Date: May 24, 2011
Label: Strike First Records

2011 is showing to be the year of hardcore, with a big release already from Gideon, and upcoming releases from Call To Preserve, Hundredth, and a comeback from legends Life In Your Way. I believe that it's also fair to add Dynasty to that list of good hardcore releasing this year. Dynasty have been playing for six years already, but have recently joined the Strike First family, and are ready to unleash their new full length, the interestingly titled Truer Living With A Youthful Vengeance. While it's nothing completely ground breaking or anything of the sort, the album is full of passionate, in your face, punk-laced hardcore, sure to make the true hardcore fans, who like more hardcore and less metalcore, happy.

The strongest tracks on the album are "Worthless Will," "Wisdom Is Supreme" and "Way Of The Wolf." All burst with energy, each being full of speedy punk drumming, heavy bass lines and throaty yells. "Worthless Will" opens up the album, and has some great gang vocals that yell "Don't waste your breath, unless you speak the truth!" "Wisdom Is Supreme" begins heavily, and has some of the best drumming on the album, while "Way Of The Wolf" starts off on a slower tempo, before a massive bass drop and more gang vocals get the song really going. Other than those songs, a lot of the songs use similar formulas, and there is an unnecessary 45-second instrumental, "Alpha," that is basically just like a lot of the other songs, instrumentally.

Overall: Full of no holds barred energy, Dynasty's Truer Living With A Youthful Vengeance is. Dynasty's anthemic hardcore is full of punk drumming, gang vocals and throaty yells, along with a message of standing for the truth and faith. Although I feel like not all the songs are groundbreaking, a good amount are solid, and are worth giving a listen to. If you like your hardcore without all the breakdowns and clean vocals, and with a raw, hardcore punk spirit, Truer Living With A Youthful Vengeance is for you.

Rating: 7/10

Tracklisting:

1. Worthless Will
2. Voice Of Truth
3. Wisdom Is Supreme
4. Triumph And Truth
5. Alpha
6. Back To Life
7. Demolish Strongholds
8. Way Of The Wolf
9. Dangerous Minds
10. Sitting Back

Call To Preserve have released the first new song from their upcoming 7" Validation. The song is "Exploit, Neglect, Condemn" and it's up now on Facebook. http://www.facebook.com/calltopreserve Validation will be a 7" vinyl record containing 4 brand new tracks from the band, released on July 5, available only on vinyl or digitally.

Call To Preserve are about to embark upon their final tour in support of their last releaseValidation. Validation will be a 7" vinyl record containing 4 brand new tracks from the band, released on July 5, available only on vinyl or digitally. "We’ve wanted to put out vinyl for years and felt we had a few more things to say before we go, so this seemed like the perfect time and place to put out a 7”," says the band.

Dynasty has released a new song from their upcoming Strike First debut Truer Living with a Youthful Vengeance. Go have a listen to "Way of the Wolf" here http://www.facebook.com/DynastyHC and then get entered to win a pair of custom Dynasty Nikes by pre ordering the new album.

Strike First Records welcomes LA's Dynasty to the family. You can get a sneak peek of their debut album here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dynasty_HC/108814869192409

Artist: As They Sleep
Album: Dynasty
Release Date: 11/23/10
Label: Solid State Records

With the cross-pollination of metal and hardcore, bands are finding new, but also very limiting ways to express themselves musically. Somewhere along the line, bands have seemed to forget how to craft great metal, trading in technical proficiency for simplistic, mindless bludgeoning, all the while trying to be heavier, faster, and have more breakdowns than the next guy. There is a thin line between doing something and doing it right. As They Sleep, on their Solid State Records debut Dynasty, do it right.

As They Sleep play a brutally fast, yet technically proficient brand of death metal similar to label mates Becoming The Archetype and The Famine. At times, As They Sleep are also reminiscent of Impending Doom, but even more technical and without all the breakdowns. Every song, with the exception of the perfectly placed instrumental "Ritual," is extremely fast, full of shredding guitars, rapid-fire double bass, and blast beats. All of the songs are also very high quality and not one could be called a "filler".

Some of the highlights for me are the aforementioned "Ritual" which provides a nice breath of fresh air in the midst of the brutality. "Oracle of the Dead," "The Third Reich," and "Bedlam at the Nile" are all brutally fast and heavy with great vocal dynamics. "Poseidon" has a nice melodic guitar riff throughout and a cool solo. My favorite track is "Attila" which is extremely fast and heavy, before slowing down for the best guitar solo on Dynasty.

Rating: 9/10 With Dynasty, As They Sleep has seemingly come out of nowhere and hit me like a ton of bricks. This is easily one of the best metal albums of the year. In fact, I have it as my number two album, behind the latest Living Sacrifice album. As They Sleep certainly has a bright future ahead.

Reviewed by Matthew Alexander

Tracklisting:

1. Oracle of the Dead
2. To The Republic
3. The Third Reich
4. Bedlam at the Nile
5. The Darkest Ages
6. Ritual
7. The Offering
8. Attila
9. Poseidon
10. God of War
11. The Unseen

(Buy Here)