Review by Cody-James Henderson
“All I can see is red, but I’ll keep screaming ’til I’m fucking dead”
Waking up in the back of an ambulance with no clue as to what has just gone wrong can be a truly harrowing experience. Finding the right words to say to describe an experience you have no memory of is no easy task, even years after an incident like this. But through the unbearable pain and tragedy, beauty can often emerge.
For Melbourne Metalcore outfit Void Of Vision it was the start of something different. Vocalist Jack Bergin had a moment of major reflection. A new appreciation to life. A chance to right the self-described ‘self-absorbed, egocentric’ wrong that’s plagued his mind. A direction of self-growth and newfound happiness to heal physically and mentally. Insert here What I’ll Leave Behind. The bands 4th album and they’re most personal yet after an already stellar career spanning back a decade. With a new headspace direction to follow, comes a refreshed sound. Adapting a very Industrial/Nu approach to Metalcore that the band dipped their toes in on the Chronicles era, what could become of What I’ll Leave Behind as well as one of Australias most energetic acts?
Wasting no time, ‘Oblivion’ hits with a head-banging riff true to the core that create the backbone of VoV. While the roots build the foundation, it is branched out into a strong electronic background that helps accentuate the hospital bed pain of the songs lyrics. To drive home a dark period for Bergin, backing vocalist and guitarist James McKendrick sinks into the chorus with a beautiful address of self-reflection.
“So, tell me how will it feel? The day I won’t forget?”
To add your own twist onto someone else words can be no easy feat, especially something so personal, but the brotherhood shared within VoV is on full display here. When one hurts, they all hurt. Oblivion is a brilliant display of this. ‘Blood For Blood’ puts the intensity of music to the absolute limit. The generations that have been created by VoV play the entirety of a career spectrum, crushing from straight out classic Metalcore before cruising effortlessly into an up-tempo Hardstyle bridge that makes you want to get your hands up and clap along. Its appropriate that the band is on an arena tour with Parkway Drive at this moment in time, this is a song designed for the largest audiences you can compile. Songwriting like this deserves to be rewarded on such a scale.
‘Supanova’ delivers a massively strong and catchy chorus that audiences are going to eat up. McKendrick asserts himself as one of modern Metalcores strongest clean vocalists with is incredible ability to harmonise with himself so clearly without taking away from Bergins intensity filling the blanks. Its levels of personality will fill you with motivations as you’re constantly asked, “What are you waiting for?” giving the listeners a chance to take something from someones soul crushing doubt.
So we need to talk about ‘Neurotic’. Its as if Nine Inch Nails and Motionless in White spawned a modern Nu-Metal classic that was beyond its years. Like a new friend that you feel you have known for years. It feels like it pulls at your skin, restrains you in an almost sensual kind of manner, hauntingly tickling your mind. It makes you want to dance, be lustful, scream all whilst making you want to throw your body against the wall. The little voices saying, “Like Me?” in your ears will have you feeling all sorts of ways that I can’t honestly write here. This is a song of the year contender in every sense of the word and could be my new favourite VoV song. I need to take a moment to compose myself before continuing sorry.
“Bolt the negative mind down onto the cold. Let the gamma knife pierce the depths of my soul”
We return to our regularly scheduled programming with ‘Gamma Knife’ and this one is as painful as the title sounds. Bergin recounts a very detailed experience of a seizure from its moment of happening to being in the hospital bed, wheeled into a room for radiation therapy with the tool known as a ‘Gamma Knife’. I can’t fault this song for being a fast paced, chugging synth fest as the beats match the beats of an MRI machine. (if you’ve ever had one, you know exactly what I’m referring to). And just like tracks so far, McKendrick nails a pitch perfect chorus that provides sunshine on a dark shadow of feelings. I can’t imagine the procedures Bergin has had to face over the last few years, but this gives us the best understanding of the situation. I must applaud Bergin for his ability to be so open.
‘Beautiful Things’ is a breather between the chaos. That is of course if you’re not afraid to cry. As it begs the question “If you’re not afraid to die, then what’s the point of life?” this feels almost like a letter of uncertainty from Bergin. Its raw and direct approach to potentially not being here tomorrow will hit you where it hurts. But in a sombre way, it makes you think of what exactly you have created to leave for those when you are gone. With nothing more than an electronic beat and a voice, ‘Beautiful Things’ hits the hardest of any song so far.
“Have you ever had the feeling in a room that’s full of people, That there’s no one really there?”
‘Empty’ targets the ones who have struggled to love themselves to the point of feeling like a stranger. Its combinations of Melodic Hardcore and glitching backing track moments give this song such a timeless feeling. It feels like a familiar tune you’ve heard before, but the character VoV gives it helps it stand out. And that chorus? Magical. Seriously, the bands’ ability to drive you into mayhem but bring you straight back into a chorus that keeps a song feeling unpredictable needs to be studied. The same can be said about ‘Midnight Sweat’. Another recount from Bergin and his fear of being a burden on those he loves, the fear of closing his eyes again gives you the closest understanding of an indescribable situation.
‘Decades’ brings a 2000’s industrial vibe to the table. Like a Rob Zombie/Static X attack on the senses, its riff hooks you in and drags you to the depths of the gallows. Where its message comes from a personal hell that can’t be discouraged, this is the only song so far that doesn’t have a high level of replay ability for me. Its by no means a bad song at all, its just that its predecessors set the bar so damn high that this one just misses the mark for me.
“I wrote a song to remind you I’ve been left behind”
‘Angel Of Darkness’ marked the beginning of this new chapter for VoV. It also marked Bergin’s return to music after taking a brief break to treat his AVM which is the topic of discussion for the album. The combination of Bergin & McKendrick on this closer shows a beautiful balance between the landscape of the band and is a testament to just how far this band has come over the last decade. This genre defying melodic anthem was a step away from the crushing Core the band has built a legacy on, but in the grand scheme of What I’ll Leave Behind it sits as a perfect ending to an emotionally charged chapter.
