Review Summary: All aboard the conductor screams. He knew he was the only who could save their dreams.
Hailing from Boston, The Carrier release their first EP, No Love Can Save me. In the genre of hardcore music, or any genre for that matter, new bands are always faced with two obstacles to overcome: sounding generic and sounding bland. No Love Can Save Me, albeit on the short side, conjures up a brand of unique, melodic hardcore that defies both obstacles.
Instrumentally, the album is fairly slow-paced. The last two tracks (Hello Uncertainty, Epilogue: Forgiveness) starts with faster passages, showcasing the more technical side of The Carrier. Eventually these two songs also settle into slower rhythms. Hello Uncertainty is arguably the better of the two, featuring a catchy groove and the drummer exhibiting his skills with fast beats and a few good fills. The drummer is constantly working the bass pedal, it's especially pleasing and complementary during the slower passages. Instead of aiming for speed, the riffs accentuate atmosphere and melody. On the first track, No. 51, the guitar melody evokes almost a certain sense of grief and despair.
The instrumentation lays down the perfect platform for the album's biggest asset: the vocalist. The vocalist soars above the instruments with a passionate and unrelenting performance, spewing forth his apocalyptic lyrics. The vocals are undoubtedly the essence of this album and thankfully so, it's crisply produced, brutal and grabbing. The lyrics are highly intriguing, and tells a story about an apocalyptic train ride where God is the conductor, passing on judgement. The lyrics certainly indicate hopelessness regarding religion, emphasising how there is no salvation. The lyrics also criticise humanity and constantly describes the apocalypse.
No. 51 was the strongest song for me. The guitars and bass kicks create an almost mellow and morbid atmosphere. The vocalist thrives on this platform with his seemingly inexhaustible screams. You can almost feel his raw passion inside yourself. He is truly unrelenting and delivers an epic performance on No.51. He maintains his passion and brutality throughout the three songs.
To conclude, No Love Can Save me is one of the better EP's you'll hear in hardcore today. The Carrier create their own trademark sound. The three ubiquitous pros you'll find on this album are melodic riffs, inhuman vocals and highly intriguing lyricism.
