Stray From The Path

Euthanasia

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ft. Jesse Barnett.
Genre: Hardcore.
Released: 09/09/2022
Via UNFD

Album Review: Stray From The Path – Euthanasia

If there’s one thing I can be certain of, it’s that Stray From The Path will always have something to say about the current state of the world. ‘Euthanasia’ is the title of their latest album and it promises to be just as politically driven as everything that has come before it. The band have made quite the name for themselves off the back of an unrelenting tour cycle before Covid-19 and will be hoping to impress both old and new fans alike with their latest release. Here are my thoughts on the new album.

If an explosive start is what you were hoping for then you are in luck! ‘Needful Things’ brings aggression and heaviness right off the bat. Don’t expect the band to let up as they bombard you with nothing but beat-down instrumentals and heavy-as-hell breakdowns! The second track ‘May You Live Forever’ turns the angst up to 11 and will give your neck muscles an intense workout. As far as album openings go, this one has to be up there with the sheer quality on display.

‘III’ has one of the more unique intros that explodes into an impassioned track that will have you raging against the machine once again. A gritty vocal delivery matched with an instrumental that will undoubtedly have the mosh pit crew raging at full force. Not to be outdone, ‘Guillotine’ opens with a hectic drum-heavy fill before laying waste to anything in its path. Bouncy, aggressive, and powerful is the best way to describe this track. This one is certainly worth all the time you’ve got.

You wouldn’t expect Stray From The Path to drop an album that isn’t politically fueled and full of passion and this record has it in bucket loads. Whether it’s the eccentric anthem ‘Chest Candy’, the riff melting ‘Bread & Roses’ which features Jesse Barnett of Stick To Your Guns, or the protest-ready ‘Law Abiding Citizen’, the album is exactly what you’d want from their latest release with the added addition of an, even more, p*ssed off band that are even more furious with the state of the world than they were before.

As the album’s conclusion draws closer, ‘The Salt In Your Spit’ keeps the tension high and the energy levels higher. This is only built on by the action-packed track ‘Neighborhood Watch’ which has an incredible chord progression that just sounds amped up. This is one of those tracks that will even have those in the back jumping around. Signing off the record is the song ‘Ladder Work’. An unusually lengthy track from Stray From The Path however it works so well. They channel all the aggression that has built up throughout the record and use it all at once to deliver one last BANG! An amazing ending to a pretty incredible album.

What else is there left to say? Stray From The Path has once again channelled all their anger against the establishment and turned it into a monumental album. These songs will resonate with a lot of people and I can easily see this being a huge turning point for the band.