Face Yourself is finally signed to a label, having released three prior EPs. Now, their fourth one, Martyr, drops on Sumerian Records.  I have dubbed this deathcore act the ‘EP band’ and have reviewed a bunch of their prior releases.

They really caused a stir with that debut s/t EP and the last song “Grosse Bagarre”, which they made a video for.  This short but sweet song is a cool ass video close to 400,000 views on YouTube now.  That is impressive. Singer Yasmin Liverneaux Belkhodja shows no sign of letting up on her various vocal tones, and this 5-song EP is a brief 14 minutes, but enough to kick your teeth down your gullet.

“Primal” starts things off, and at under two minutes, it packs a punch, far greater than if this song were three minutes long.  With the industrial sounds/news spoken word beginning, that goes right into a blast beat, rather than a slam.  But at the 47-second mark, it’s an excruciatingly slow and heavy slam equipped with some industrial sounds.  This slam reminds me of something off The Acacia Strain’s earlier works, where it’s so slow, yet heavy AF.  Creative opening song.

“Predatory” is up next, and those industrial sounds open the tune and are interwoven into the song.  Yasmin’s gross gutturals, lay waste then BOOM!! Right into a breakdown, then those industrial sounds are churning throughout the song, giving this track a dance vibe feel.  I think that is the intention.  The breakdown at the 1.27 section will have all fist fighting going on and on and on.  Very heavy and the beatdown slam at the 2.15 section is quite killer, and yes, the electronica vibe continues, altering the vocals to make her sound computerized as well.

“Saboteur” starts immediately with a slamtastic brutal groove that gets into some double pounding fast moments, then brings it back to the breakdown.  That Acacia Strain-like slow breakdown gets heavier and is excellent, then right into a blast beat. Yasmin is utilizing her plethora of vocal tones this time, going for the screechy highs, then right back into the gutturals.  She is one of the best extreme female metal vocalists out there, and I would say in terms of sheer brutality, it’s her and Bridget Lynch, of Stabbing, as the most brutal female vocalists, and each of these ladies actually shreds many of their male counterparts.  The tones they both can do is mind-boggling.

The EP ends with the single, which was released ahead of this ep dropping, “Sideration”.  There are plenty of computerized sound effects that then take the song to some atmospheric and almost epic moments.  The vocals are gut-wrenchingly filthy and most of all angry.  The electronica moments are throughout the song, and these effects are used as if they are another instrument.  The breakdown at the end has an epic feel and quality to it, and then the song ends.

Face Yourself is a very creative deathcore band, and Martyr is very creative and well done.  I am curious to see what their fanbase is going to say about this release, given the fact that there is a heavy emphasis on electronica, industrial, and rave dance-like beats.  This could potentially open up doors for the band and create a new deathcore subgenre or this could potentially backfire.  I have heard from at least one listener that they are not pleased with these new additions to the Face Yourself sound.  I enjoy these additions; they make the music a little more interesting, but I will say, during some moments, they are so heavily integrated that they overtake the song a bit.  Overall, still a very good EP.

[Visit the band's website]

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