Psychopathic Daze- Psychopathic Daze

Psychopathic Daze is a metalcore/groove metal band from Chicago. Don't let those tags scare you away, these guys actually show a solid amount of potential on this debut full-length. Blending the crushing moments commonly seen in the groove metal genre with some of the better attributes of metalcore proves to be a successful combination for Psychopathic Daze.

The album is very groove oriented for the most part, that being said the album is also pack full of melody and gives a fairly diverse selection of song structures to keep things interesting enough. The guitar tone is a tad flat for my taste but it isn't distracting enough to throw the album off much. One thing that makes this album standout a bit is it's production. Unlike many bands playing this style with an extremely polished sound, these guys take a different approach with production that is much more raw than the average. Whether this was due to their budget or done on purpose it still makes for a breath of fresh air when compared to the stagnant, overproduced, albums of many bands playing this style today.

The vocals consist mostly of pissed off, mid-ranged screams. The harsh vocals are great but a little more variation wouldn't hurt. Occasionally some clean vocals will make an appearance and although it is rare, when they do show up they are delivered in an excellent manner. One track that seems to stand out the most on this album is "Declaration". This song is a monstrous, mosh pit inducing anthem. It puts all the positive things Psychopathic Daze has going for them on display in a short, four minute time frame. If you are going to test the waters to see if this is something you'd enjoy "Declaration" would certainly be the best place to start.

Overall Psychopathic Daze have delivered a decent debut full-length. I'll be the first to say I'm not the biggest fan of this style of music, but I actually found myself enjoying most of the material here. It's safe to say that if Psychopathic Daze can make it onto my extremely short list of modern metalcore bands I enjoy, that this will most likely fit nicely in the collection of people who actually listen to the style religiously. If you are a fan of groove metal or metalcore this album is definitely worth picking up. For those like me who aren't huge fans, give it a listen anyway. Who knows, you might dig it.