Gift Giver is a 2012 Tech/Nu Metal band
out of Detroit, Michigan. They’ll be releasing their new album Shitlife
on April 27th.
I’ll just get right into this. They
have a pretty cool sound that does a fine job of keeping me interested. They
have a very dissonant chaotic sound, but it’s definitely handled and structured
with care. The rhythms are just flat out cool and add a lot of flavor to what
they’re doing. Their use of electronic sounds is appropriate and really adds to
that chaotic sound. Given how everything blends, their use of phrasing combined
with their relentless, angst filled rhyme schemes, it’s very apparent that these
guys know what they’re doing. The songs themselves, while all fairly consistent
stylistically, definitely have a good bit of variety to them.
A problem I find with a lot of metal bands is that their
screaming is kind of emotionless and bland. These guys are not victims to this
syndrome. There’s a sound that is put behind Justin Johnson’s voice that really
gives the music a flare of intensity. I think a lot of that may come from
Johnson’s way of occasionally leading his screaming with clean vocals.
Doing this adds a lot of dynamic build up that lets the intensity feel
like it’s coming from somewhere, rather than being intense all the time. It’s a
good effect.
What else can I say? I like this album. It gives me a sense of
nostalgia to bands I listened to a few years ago, except with a bit of a twist.
These guys are passionately aggressive with their sound, and I can really dig
that. If you’re into that modern kind of sound with the
dissonant melodies, rhythmically complex chugging, and high/low screaming that
is reminiscent of bands like Bring Me the Horizon, then you’ll probably like
this band.
