Album Review: New Vegas - 'Post Tenebras Spero Lucem'

Though it may not be the most memorable release ever, New Vegas' 'Post Tenebras Spero Lucem' warrants a good listen. With an aggressive, gritty sound and decent songwriting, there aren't any real standout moments but there's enough here to keep people interested.

The EP starts strong, kicking off with a sample from a George Carlin routine before launching right into the sonic assault. From here the band proceeds to tear your ears a new one with unrelenting force. The guitars are edgy and pounding, and the band makes extensive use of feedback in their songs, but luckily not to the point of annoyance. The bass also gets some room to shine rather than being drowned out by the guitars, which is often the case with this style of music.

It would've been nice to hear more variation in the vocal department. The singer's hoarse shrieks and screams really start to grate on your ears after a while, especially since there is little to no variation in tone or pitch. Even just peppering some tracks with the odd section of clean backing vocals would've helped, but unfortunately this is not the case. Instead you're stuck with the same unrefined style pretty much the whole way through.

In terms of musicianship, it sometimes sounds like New Vegas are unsure of the direction they want to take. At times they churn out furious, noise punk-esque riffs with biting, hard-hitting attitude and then suddenly they'll turn completely moshcore and throw in some underwhelming breakdown of sorts. The genre-mixing wouldn't be so bad if it flowed well, but it usually doesn't.

Overall, 'Post Tenebras Spero Lucem' is an EP that gets some things very right, and others not so much. It's at its best when unleashing maximum aggression, but sometimes falters due to genre confusion and a jarring lack of fluidity.

While certainly not the best EP out there at the moment, you could also do a lot worse than to give this one a listen. When it works it really works, and when it doesn't it's still totally listenable. If you're looking for a short burst of aggression then this will probably do the trick.

1. Run and Hide

2. Life Decisions

3. Post Tenebras Spero Lucem

4. Familiar Strangers

5. Questions

6. Self Destruction