Between the Buried and Me - Colors (Victory)
I don’t think there was an album more hyped and highly anticipated in the
metal community this year than Colors by Between the Buried and Me.
Following up to their last full length of original material with Alaska and
last years covers album The Anatomy Of, Colors picks up where Alaska left
off and then runs away. Hands down, this is the album of the year. Every
time a band is about to release a new album they generally call it their
most mature, heavy, and complex album to date. Well, Colors is the most
mature, heavy, and complex album BTBAM have done. Tommy Rogers puts out his
strongest vocal efforts yet with his harsh screams/growls and his completely
underappreciated clean singing. The guitar work of Paul Waggoner and Dustie
Waring is absolutely epic. From the thrashing riffs to the sweeps and solos.
Filling out the line up with bassist Dan Briggs and drummer Blake
Richardson, they provide their fair share of memorable moment on Colors with
their jazzy rhythms. Generally I would complain about an album being only 8
tracks long, but that is not the case here as Colors clocks in at over an
hour long, including 3 tracks that come in over ten minutes. For me, the
tracks that stand out the most on this album are Informal Gluttony and Sun
of Nothing. The breakdowns in Sun of Nothing are completely different from
anything they’ve ever done and are still incredible. The musicianship that
BTBAM have is absolutely flawless. I highly recommend that everyone listens
to this album. Check out BTBAM on their headlining tour, as on the first
night they played this album in its entirety. You absolutely will not be
disappointed.
Nick Zimmer