Review: Unto Others Deepen Their Goth Metal Greatness with Never, Neverland
A name change from Idle Hands didn’t stop the rise of Unto Others in trad and goth metal. The Portland band’s interest in somber gloom, electrifying hooks, and a dash of extremity help them stand out from other sad boy metallers. More importantly, they have enough self-awareness to know their style combo’s tendency toward goofiness. Songs like “Give Me to the Night” work so well because, underneath the austere pessimism, they’re clearly having fun with each other. To that effect, Never Neverland manages to develop Unto Others’ sense of adventure without completely jumping the shark. For a band with a lot of old-school goth influence, that’s hard to pull off… but this album proves it can be done.
For those who immediately think of Type O Negative when they think of goth metal, suffice to say that listening “Butterfly” will quickly put Idle Hands in a different school of thought. While the baritone singing might bring The Cure to mind, so does the driving, mid-tempo beat. But the guitar riffs and leads find a way to recall Maiden and Priest without conflicting with the depressive groove, showing the nuance Unto Others use in their songwriting. There’s even room for acoustic strumming to blend with the powerful rhythms and growling bass on “Angel Of The Night,” as Gabriel Franco’s rangeful singing glides over the reverbed guitar strains, Sebastian Silva’s guitar solo work somehow feels like a transposition from what would normally be a synth feature in a pure goth song.
The first real curveball comes in the thrashing aggression of “Momma Likes The Door Closed.” Though a certified rager on the surface, even the playing itself belies a certain playfulness. From the tongue and cheek monologues to drummer Colin Vranizan’s wonderfully obnoxious use of roto-toms, the headbanging fun begs for this gleeful goofiness. On the other hand, “Suicide Today” might have the best set-up and pay-off of the year. 90% of the song comes off like an earnest anti-suicide song, before the heartless refrain of “Do it another day,” and the choice line “Who cleans the brains that splatter?” have the perfect deadpan gallows humor to subvert the otherwise believable altruism.
Deeper cuts like “Flatline,” stand out for their use of blast beats and tremolo picking, complete with Franco crossing into Attila Csihar territory with hair-raising whales. While not an extreme band persay, these heavier moments go to show the lack of boundaries Unto Others have on this album. If it’s not black metal, then it’s the weirdly appropriate sample of “Hey, listen!” in “Time Goes On” from Link’s overly-talkative fairy guide in the 1998 classic video game Ocarina of Time. It’s stuff like this that gives enough of a wink to the audience to show that the crowd shout “Ho”s “Ha”s and “Hey”s aren’t supposed to be taken completely seriously (like many a bad bar band would attempt, and fail).
Another cool-factor increase for Unto Others comes from their fearless embrace of all manner of rock n roll steeze, like the glammed-out arena vibes of “Sunshine” or the tasteful use of clap tracks in “Cold World.” Actually, the latter doesn’t even use distorted guitars, going for a pure goth appeal. But in either case, Unto Others doesn’t sound like they’re trying too hard. The diversity on display comes from their comfort in writing music together, not from a desire to throw curveballs for no reason. This nice contrast between classic metal and demure gloom is where Unto Other shines the most, as “Fame” brings classic Judas Priest vibes alongside the brisk side-stick back beat and ethereal clean guitar licks “When The Kids Get Caught.” It’s that restrained emotionalism dancing with gleefully cheesy riff-mongering that keeps these guys in limbo between campiness and badassery.
The stylistic flexes continue on “I Am The Light,” which brings some old-school prog rock rhythm structures to the Unto Others sound. It’s this willingness to stretch the boundaries of a sound without breaking it that allows a cut like “Raigeki” to avoid getting redundant as it treads the band’s usual path. Of course, listener engagement isn’t a tall order when Unto Other’ MO remains nimble guitar licks, thoughtful dynamics, and powerful singing.
“Hoops” and the title track deliver a fantastic one-two-punch to end the album. The former somehow pulls off cowbell into a largely instrumental track, allowing the guitars to take the cake with their electrifying zeel. But later winds things up with a more nuanced dance between gentle melancholy and propulsive energy. An up-tempo four-on-the-floor groove drives the somber guitar ambiance from dynamic solos to hypnotic refrains.
Ornamentation aside, Unto Others works because they write catchy music. That’s what they want to do, and that’s what they’ll continue to do. It’s not about wowing anyone with chops or extremity. It’s about writing music that keeps you humming along when you’re done listening. In this regard, they’ve done it again. In other regards, Never, Neverland successfully developed its brand of catchiness.
Unto Others’ Never, Neverland is out this Friday, September 20 via Century Media Records.
