Code Orange Delivers Crushing Blows On New Record "Forever"

If you're still mourning the loss of The Dillinger Escape Plan, look no further for your next favorite band. Code Orange are here with their third record Forever, and it delivers some intense, crushing blows that are sure to knock you out if you're not careful.

This album takes no time to start throwing its punches. Title track 'Forever' opens it up with powerful riffs and destructive vocals following a very evil, distorted vocoder intro. This track is chaos channeled into music. Riffs bang everywhere while the song constantly moves into new sections. 'Kill The Creator' follows up with similar intensity, the track offering up more chaos and pure rage with loud, jarring moments in between. The contrast between the dark, thrashing riffs and the light, edgy guitars in other parts makes the track's emotion a lot more pronounced.

There are moments on the record that aren't quite as explosive. 'Bleeding In The Blur' sees less screaming and blistering riffs than other tracks, instead keying in on more creepy, offputting vibes rather than pure anger. 'Hurt Goes On' towards the end of the record also sees a move from relentlessness and keys in more on its mood and creepy atmosphere. It does eventually come to a hellish ending, but it largely revolves around its atmosphere. Closing track 'dream2' features solely clean vocals and synths, but does end a bit abruptly without sending the album off.

The problem with pure chaos is that it is unpredictable and often times just blinded in rage. Many tracks on Forever seem too wrapped up in their rage and forget their purpose; see 'Real,' which in its pounding anger blindly exclaims "This is real now, motherfucker!" That claim may read as aggressive, but its delivery is pretty laughable. Many songs also feature constantly shifting parts that see no transition besides silence, as if they just cut parts of them out and stuck a new part in. It's a bit messy and doesn't really flow well, nor does it keep things interesting - just confused.

Code Orange delivered crushing tracks in Forever, but they seemed to lose track of what their songs were really about. There are few, if any, tracks on Forever that really cling to any motif other than rage and actually carry through. It's a good album to channel aggression out on, but if you're looking for content over chaos, you may need to look elsewhere.

Favorite Track: Spy

Least Favorite Track: Real

Rating: 68 / 100

Buy or listen to Forever here: