Reviews

It Dies Today is what Atreyu would sound like if Atreyu was an honest band. It Dies Today aren’t drenched in mascara, appealing to the masses by synthesizing metal and emo; rather Buffalo’s favorite sons seek expression and that is the form their expression took. “You were the most beautiful name I’ve ever cursed” could be just another empty emo cliché, drained of all tangible meaning by lookalike bands, but It Dies Today emanates an refreshing virility.  
 
The Caitiff Choir is straight hard charging metalcore complete with the required heavy riffing guitars that give way like so much shoddily constructed scaffolding to half speed beats and melodious singalongs. The screaming that precedes such a breakdown doesn’t sound overproduced, indeed the same can be said for the album as a whole. The noise remains spontaneous instead of losing its urgency from too much careful plotting. That is not to say that The Caitiff Choir is anything less than thoroughly thought out and beautifully designed. However, It Dies Today keeps its brutality relevant and its emotional outpouring heart rending. That is not an easy task today where it seems every band is trying to follow the formula (death in the band name) + (double bass pedal flailing) + (lyrics of killing) + (emo breakdowns).
 
The downfall, if any, of It Dies Today and The Caitiff Choir is that they might be overlooked in an already crowded marketplace. If this happens it will be a sad occurrence, as It Dies Today does play by the formula, but their freshness, honesty, and crushing wall of noise push them above the rest. Look past cheap puns like “Severed Ties Yield Severed Heads,” and the Zoolander reference “Freak Gasoline Fight Accident” found in the track listing, sit down with headphones or mosh your room, and join the Choir.