Through The Void – Life Is Cancelled
Through The Void is a Belgian Nu-Metal band. Heavily influenced by Linkin Park, Slipknot, and While She Sleeps, they bring the 90s back with a 2020s attitude and production quality. Life Is Cancelled is their second EP. It contains four songs and runs for about 18 minutes, giving you a chance to quickly get through the songs a few times. This ability to hear the songs repeating in rapid succession allows the listener to focus on different things easily in each play unless you just want to focus on your favorite part. Either way, you hear it; you are treated to something heavy with some pretty incredible grooves and hooks.
https://withkoji.com/@ThroughTheVoidBand
Band Members:
- Chakib Zanouny – Vocals
- Anthony Destruhaut – Guitars
- David Annenkoff – Drums
May 25, 2022
Tracklist:
- Denied
- Answer
- Enter
- Believe
“Denied” is the lead track, and you hear the Nu-Metal, but there are some distinct Industrial influences here as well. The song is heavy and has a great hook. The guitar riff is dark, and the lyrics match the tone. The spoken word opening claiming that “we are the denied, we’re put aside” lets you know these guys are frustrated with being pushed away and told they don’t matter. There is punk angst to the lyrics tied to the Nu-Metal music, giving the track some extra crossover appeal.
“Answer” is more anger directed at the powers for their inability to provide meaningful actions to fix the world’s issues. Of course, can we rely on the people who created the problems to turn around and fix the problem they made? There is a continued thread of punk anger and calling for real social justice, though it’s delivered in a distinctly metal fashion. Again, the bass is hard driving, and the drums are massive, filling the soundscape with rapid-fire pulses. The guitars are heavy and, again, borderline Industrial Metal at times. The vocals range from clean and frustrated to harsh and furious, fitting into the composition well. The lyrical tone matches the musical tone beautifully.
If I had to give a quick synopsis of “Enter,” it would be f@#k the system. The sheer amount of sound this band puts out on these songs is quite astonishing. The guitars dominate the sphere, but the drums and bass hold their own by supporting those incredibly sharp tones. The vocals are beastly in their own right. Weaving through clean and harsh tones, they stay hardcore, exhorting the listener to get pissed and realize they need to fight the system or lose their identity. It does not matter whether you are talking about politicians or corporate overlords; they are just out to take everything for themselves and leave you broke and confused.
“Believe” is the more personal song on this disc. The issues are with an individual, not the overlords of the political and corporate worlds. There is anger at the loss of someone. It sounds like revenge is on the menu when they say, “suffering sucks, but patience is a virtue.” The tuning on this track is similar to the others, but this one just hits a little harder for me. The music again fits the angst of the words and gives a coherent message.
These guys may be Belgian, but their lyrics and themes are universal. The Dutch, Americans, and Canadians are all fighting these same battles in their countries. I’m sure there are plenty of others, but I hear those personally from people I know. It’s crazy that the entire world is going down the drain simultaneously. Eventually, there will be nowhere to turn, so the only thing left will be to rise up and join this revolution!
Through The Void have written a series of anthemic songs that fire up the mind, stoking the rage and energizing the desire to stand up and fight against the oppressors. I love that the four songs all have the same feel and tone. Giving the whole record a cohesive vibe that permeates the band’s entire existence, giving them an identity. There is no desire to write anything but the next angry anthem, and they do that very well.
MZ Ratings:
- Musicianship
- Guitars – 9
- Rhythms – 9
- Vocals – 9
- Songwriting – 9
- Production – 9
- Overall – 9.00
