Album Review | “Leaving Darkness Behind” - Proven Alive
Tracks
- Misery Awaits
- Beneath the Surface
- Downfall
- Black Hole
- Running Out of Breath
- Penny for Your Thoughts
- Cut the Strings
- Shed
- The Things I Keep Inside
Review
Hailing from Quebec, Canada, solo-project Proven Alive released their second album “Leaving Darkness Behind” on April 5th, 2024. The first track of the album, “Misery Awaits” starts off with a dramatic sample of heavy breathing, gunfire, and overall destruction. Exploding into powerful singing vocals, ferocious guitar chugging and devastating drum work, Proven Alive quickly forms a crushingly heavy metal sound. Unexpectedly, the track changes into electronic beats and rapping, displaying multi-genre talent and a sense of distinct variety. The song balances rapping and electronic sections with heavy-hitting metal sections, making both portions more impactful. Ending with a siren into a brutal breakdown and guttural vocals, Proven Alive finishes off the track powerfully.
“Beneath the Surface” starts off with gentle synths and mellow rapping and booming 808’s before launching into dynamic down-tuned guitar chords and an anthemic metal chorus. Blending modern rap and metal seamlessly, Proven Alive creates a unique and exciting sound that defies genres. Building into an intense breakdown, Proven Alive utilizes the best from rap and metal to create an attractive and fresh sound for fans of either style of music.
“Downfall” starts off with flowing rap, trap beats, and dubstep-esque synths, creating a powerful electronic atmosphere. With multiple vocal tracks, Proven Alive creates a catchy sound with deep layers of harmonies and incredibly strong vocal hooks. Suddenly dramatic guitar chugs emerge and double bass drumming throws the listener into the midst of a breakdown that mixes extreme vocals and rapid rapping. After a memorable chorus, Proven Alive transitions into yet another explosive breakdown to finish out the song.
“Black Hole” starts off with an emergency broadcast before bursting into chunky, technical guitar riffage that seems to blend metalcore and djent. Fierce screams back up the extreme vocals, creating an immersive atmosphere that leads into a dynamic chorus. Swapping between catchy hard rock choruses, rapping, singing, and growls, Proven Alive shows an entertaining and exciting sense of variety throughout their music.
The 5th track “Running Out of Breath” starts with bright guitar chords and distant keys before drifting into singing and an ambient atmosphere. With gusto, the song launches into a catchy chorus that utilizes deep synth soundscapes, melodic singing, and strong guitar chord progressions. After a rapping buildup, Proven Alive jumps into a dramatic breakdown filled with rapid double bass drumming and even a vocoder. The song closes out with a final and exceptional chorus leading into even more heavy riff brutality.
“Penny for Your Thoughts” starts with distorted piano melodies and emphasized rapping vocals. With a powerful riser, the song bursts into upbeat rapping and booming trap beats. Switching into an energetic metal chorus, “Penny for Your Thoughts” blends singing and rapping to create a catchy and memorable melody. With thought provoking lyrics, Proven Alive creates complex and emotional meanings that listeners will relate to and enjoy. In a particularly earth-shaking outro, the band launches into gutturals, growls, and high screams, alongside bending down-tempo madness.
“Cut the Strings” furthers the exit of the previous song bursting into extraordinarily heavy instrumentals and powerful extreme vocal techniques. The song transitions into gentle rapping, and ominous synth atmospheres, before diving into a metalcore style singing chorus. With a breakdown blending ethnic electronic tones, Proven Alive creates memorable sections that use creative musicianship. With impressive production and a theatrical element, “Cut the Strings” launches into some of the most extreme, in-human vocals of the album in a final series of breakdowns that leads to the song fading out.
The 8th song “Shed” starts with distant female vocals that are soon overtaken by swift rapping and a powerful electronic beat. In a sudden shift, Proven Alive moves into a ballad-like chorus with intricate melodies and intensely catchy vocal hooks. In an atmospheric bridge, Proven Alive rips away ambient elements as they launch into screaming and a crushing breakdown. After a rapping interlude, “Shed” finishes out on a final, passionate Chorus.
The last track of the album “The Things I Keep Inside” starts with a beat layered underneath epic guitar chugs and rising swells that switch into rapping and trap beats. Blending singing, rapping, and screaming, over powerfully heavy instrumentals, Proven Alive does an excellent job creating variety and contrast in their music. With masterfully crafted choruses, Proven Alive takes listeners on journeys through sadness, rage, and happiness throughout the entirety of “Leaving Darkness Behind”
Overall “Leaving Darkness Behind” is an impressive and deeply unique display of Proven Alive’s concoction of rap, heavy metal, and electronic genres. With emotional lyrics, incredible production, and a powerful juxtaposition between musical styles, Proven Alive creates an attractive sound that fans of metal, rap, and more are certain to enjoy! You can stream “Leaving Darkness Behind” out everywhere now!
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