Anymore with Facedown Records, you know what you are getting; some form of quality Christian metal, whether it be the melodic death metal (War of Ages, A Plea For Purging), catchy poppy metalcore/hardcore (Take It back, Kingston Falls), or traditional hardcore (Call to Preserve, Sleeping Giant), and now we have Wrench in the Works (basically the new incarnation of Emmanuel 7), a more angular, stuttering yet punchy form of hardcore.

Culling from the likes of Converge, Zao, Symphony In Peril, Advent and such, WITW are a muscular, hefty act with lots of stuttering, jagged riffs and burly vocals. Not overly crazy of spazzy tech core, but certainly a restrained discordance and chaos. However, they do manage to inject a few moments of traditional hardcore melody and structure into the fray as tracks like “Our Time”, “One Foot Out of Hell” and moments of “Faith is a Virus” break up things a little bit. On the whole though, a majority of the tracks are more abrasive, sharp edged tracks as the likes of “Dust Over Time Test”, “Tonight Is War”, “Pale Fire” rumble and lurch with the right mix of caustic energy and structure. “Loaded Gun”, “Faith Is a Virus” and closing title track try to be a little more experimental with dashes of acoustic introspection and a more ambient graceful side that’s fits the subject matter but seemed a bit sudden and forced amid the relative noise.

Aesthetically, Andy Mehl has a standard shout roar and the other two members ply their instruments with aplomb, however, the standout is the very, tight and ultra punchy production, especially the drums of Andy Nelson, who pretty much carries this record. But ultimately, it’s still a record that’s just solid and enjoyable rather than anything special, especially in such a crowded genre.  

Now, what exactly is the Lost Art of Heaping Coal?

[Visit the band's website]

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