Alexisonfire Old Crows / Young Cardinals Review

From Vagrant Records comes the first new album from Alexisonfire in over 3 years. I'll admit, this is my first exposure to the group and while I realize that I may be a bit late to this party, I am glad to have arrived. This stuff is pure anger! I am amazed at the raw aggression heard on the very first track, "Old Crows". From their bio, I can tell they are from Ontario and that this is their fourth release, and what I hear is some pretty brutal "crossover". Not sure that term is still relevant, but maybe we can make it relevant again. 20 years ago it was used to describe a crossover between thrash metal and hardcore punk. Stuff like DRI, Suicidal Tendencies, Dr. Know, etc. 20 years later, I would argue that it means the same thing. There is a whole retro-thrash metal thing going on and certainly hardcore has become a bit mainstream with the success of Rise Against, so I think it's fair to say this is a metal / punk crossover release. I hear a lot of Killswitch Engage at times, not clone-like, just an Alexisonfire variant.

It's quite good. I find myself using the word clever a lot as I listen to this release. "Young Cardinal" is a terrific song. It's got its own distinct parts, some hauntingly beautiful vocals with (I know this might sound odd) some atmospheric death metal vibes on the more up tempo section. It does work though!

The album as a whole is a bit more accessible than say a Mars Volta and a bit more punk than the metal stylings of some peers like All That Remains. "Born and Raised", "Burial" and "Emerald Street" are three more stand out tracks and highlight the talent that the band possesses for penning both song and lyric. I just keep coming back to clever. Maybe it's because this is a punk release, but it sure does marry together a world of other influences.

Heck, there is even a pretty radio friendly song in "The Northern", a bit of a mellow, grungy Soundgarden type tune. Saying that a punk band can be played on the radio is probably silly, since Rise Against is all over adult rock stations these days. But Alexisonfire a another click closer to hardcore, so from that perspective it's pretty intriguing.

On the whole, I can't find much fault from Alexisonfire. I hear they are a terrific live band and I imagine they'll do well on this years Warped Tour.

Go grab it at Amazon



or at iTunes