Code Orange – The Above

Written by on 15-10-2023 at 22:58.

The previous unique and progressive record by American Code Orange was not discussed on this site. A mortal sin. However, I did report on the online release show for Underneath (in Dutch) a little later. A stream to promote an album? Yes it was indeed: COVID-19 threw a spanner in the works, remember? At the time, the band came up with an original idea in an even more original setting. Reading back on that coverage, I think about what a special time that actually was. Anyway, the more hardcore-oriented album Forever did get a review here and although the six-piece is quite a name in their own country, there is still plenty to gain in name recognition on this side of the ocean. Now it’s time for The Above which comes out via new home Blue Grape Music. This also means another new approach to the music.

The Above is musically only slightly comparable to Underneath, let alone to Forever (2017) or I Am King (2014). Well, that may not necessarily mean much at first, but the frowning eyebrows on my face at a ninety-degree angle after the first listen certainly do. Indeed, Code Orange dives even deeper down its rabbit hole and stretches the already great contrasts even further. As is usually the case, the electronic glitch sounds are taking a very prominent place in every song and they come beautifully into their own during the harder arrangements Theatre Of Cruelty, A Drone Opting Out Of The Hive, the pumping Swallowing The Rabbit Whole-like The Game and the brutally pounding Grooming My Replacement. These songs are all unpredictable, surprisingly chaotic and very nicely layered as the band is known for. The mix of industrial, nu-metal and metalcore is instantly recognizable and the results are once again enjoyable.

Up to this point we had some points of recognition. The remaining ten songs, however, give us a mix of different styles that we have not heard so emphatically from Code Orange before. It’s up to me to explain some of them, and this is something colleagues who also follow the band closely have already wished me good luck for beforehand. Firstly, a contribution from Smashing Pumpkins vocalist Billy Corgan, although his awkward, almost whispering vocals in the nu-metal-like Take Shape sound mainly as if Sméagol has caught a bad cold and needs to take rest from the doctor. The grooving The Mask Of Sanity then undulates back and forth between quiet and loud, Jamie experimenting lustily with higher pitched vocals and spoken word passages, while everything sticks together with Deftones vibes. And what about Mirror? Reba takes full charge of the vocals and guides us through a laid-back and dreamy, alternative rock song. If you had shouted about eight years ago that this band would write a song like this, you would have most certainly been given a long-armed white suit with tightly drawn belts.

But hey, stay tuned, we’re not there yet! That Billy Corgan contribution is suddenly not so crazy, as the grungy vocal lines and parts of vocalist duo Jamie and Reba are appearing several times such as in the Korn-like Splinter The Soul. You can also hear them in the swinging I Fly and during the electronic dance beats and rock mix in Snapshot, plus many other influences fused into this revamped Code Orange vessel. Those who think that all the rabbits are now out of the top hat will be disappointed: with the quirky pop punk in Circle Through, Code Orange adds another new genre to The Above. Although the song turns out to be the last surprising trip of the album, both the slow-building But A Dream… and The Above, ending the album on a somewhat languid note.

It takes many listens to have a clear view of this album. On the one hand, Code Orange pushes its own boundaries and those of the metal genre itself. Kind of like Sleep Token is currently doing, or Turnstile did two years ago in its genre with Glow On. On the other hand, even after many listens, The Above does not listen nicely as a whole, partly due to the many shifts in style that follow each other in rapid succession. This approach again has its flip side as the many different genres covered mean that there is plenty to explore – but it does feel like overkill at times. Like hitting a packed piñata with full force and then shooting into choice stress at the sight of all the colorful candy on the ground. It takes guts to flip your original style the way Code Orange does with this fifth record. This may not turn out to be entirely successful on The Above yet, but it is only be a matter of time before it will.

Score:

74/100

Label:

Blue Grape Music, 2023

Tracklisting:

  1. Never Far Apart
  2. Theatre Of Cruelty
  3. Take Shape
  4. The Mask Of Sanity Slips
  5. Mirror
  6. A Drone Opting Out Of The Hive
  7. I Fly
  8. Splinter The Soul
  9. The Game
  10. Grooming My Replacement
  11. Snapshot
  12. Circle Through
  13. But A Dream..
  14. The Above

Line-up:

  • Jami Morgan – Vocals
  • Dominic Landolina – Guitar
  • Reba Meyers – Guitar
  • Joe Goldman – Basguitar
  • Eric Balderrose – Keyboard, programming
  • Max Portnoy – Drums

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