Brainchild of Paul Wandtke, Bedlem is so much more than a metal band, formed by best friends as a labor of love. The chemistry between each of the instruments is undeniable, and with such a strong debut record, everyone will be asking “Trivium who?”.
The album Back To Bedlem opens with “Epidemic”, static reigning in an absolutely killer drum and guitar intro, making you bounce up and down uncontrollably. The vocals kick in as the instruments fade into the background, the beautiful vocals delivering each line with power and full of emotion. The chorus hits perfectly, leading into a break that introduces the raw and rough screams that is one factor of many to set this band apart from all others.
The second track of the album is “Revelation”, a pulsing matched with drums for the intro. I
have always considered Paul a human metronome, his timing absolutely impeccable, with this song (and entire album) a perfect example of this. With the drums as the foundation, the guitar is able to keep the groove coming, sneaking in a quick, stellar solo to tickle the fancy of lead guitarists listening. The vocals continue to excel and add the finishing touches to the song, the mix of singing and screaming is balanced perfectly throughout this song.
The bouncing continues with “Avarice”, the third song of this monstrous debut album. Already repeating myself three song in due to the sheer talent and quality of each song, there are only so many synonyms you can pull from to talk about how each song is a masterpiece on an incredible album. The control of the vocals shows a mastery of the craft, the perfect amount of emphasis on each individual word is unrivaled in music today, switching from softer singing to rougher cleans and throwing in screams to send chills down your spine.
“Bereft” continues the sound of the album while keeping a unique melody to separate itself from the rest. With another great chorus to get stuck in your head all day, this song has something for everyone, from rhythm guitarists to vocalists to lead guitarists and drummers. With “Bereft” fading away, “Scorned” falls in as number five and slows down the pace of the album, clean guitar and soft drums lead into the mesmerizing vocals. Sprinkled in occasionally, distorted guitar perfectly accents the tone of the song to complete the experience for the listener. The guitar solo blends fast, technical shredding with emotional bends, showing exactly how to write the perfect solo for a slower song.
Picking the pace back up comes the song “Violence”, distorted guitar grooving over heavy drums, rougher clean vocals matching time. Bringing the screams into the break, the levels of heaviness hit their peak right before switching back into the more melodic chorus, tickling the fancy of anyone waiting for something heavy to punch them in the face.
“Praxis” is another perfect demonstration of Paul’s talent, but also demonstrates that everyone has equal say when it comes to musical expression within the band. The drums are absolutely brilliant throughout the song, but each instrument has its time to shine within this song (and all the others as well). If you were to shine a spotlight on each of the members throughout the duration of the song, each would be able to fill it will brilliance and grace, coming together as a beastly ensemble.
Sitting as track number eight, “Bethlem” slows the pace down again. Powerful clean vocals sit on top of twinkling drums and guitar, creating hills and valleys when switching between the slower verses and the faster choruses, sending goosebumps all over the body during each peak. Another emotional guitar solo makes its appearance, perfectly mixed under the vocals to provide an incredible experience for the listener.
Hitting the g-spot perfectly for that eargasm, “Gspot” brings in yet another amazing riff that will make veteran guitar players proud and beginners itch to pick the guitar up and play. Letting the guitar have full reign over the song, “Gspot” is a perfectly crafted instrumental, switching between riffs and mixing the pace up, it is exactly what an instrumental should be and will keep the attention of anyone listening.
“Chaos Reigns” fades in with more spectacular guitar and drum combinations, teasing the
heaviness a little by bringing in haunting clean vocals, hesitating before the screams make their
debut within the song. The uplifting guitar for the chorus highlights accentuates the delivery of the vocals, with another emotionally technical guitar solo leading into the expansive chorus, layering in vocal tracks to end the song with a bang.
The album concludes with “Triumph” but doesn’t allow for a respite from the headbanging. The verse builds up to the explosive chorus, shifting back into the verse for another brilliantly paced song. “Triumph” is the perfect conclusion to the album, and if you cannot get enough of the song, there is an acoustic version as the bonus track to the album. The soft acoustic guitar works surprisingly well for the uplifting song, creating a beautiful ballad that almost sounds like a completely different song, save for the harmonious vocals.
This album is a must buy for fans of Disturbed, Sevendust or Tool, you will find yourself
listening to each song an unhealthy amount of times.
Members:
Drums – Paul Wandtke
Guitar – Joey Trace Brassal
Vocals – Mike Petrasek
Bass – Brian Aher