Foreign Hands – Bleed The Dream | EP Review

The early 2000s were a hotbed of creativity for metalcore, with now-classic acts like Poison The Well making their mark on the world. That style has seen something of a revival recently, and Delaware’s Foreign Hands are in the vanguard of it. Their latest EP Bleed The Dream makes that clear from artwork alone, but it’s also a cavalcade of razor-sharp riffing, frenetic drumming and vocals switching between acerbic barks and soaring melodic choruses. We’ve heard similar throwback records from the likes of Dying Wish and Wristmeetrazor in the last 12 months alone, but Foreign Hands still put their own jagged spin on it. 

Barely fifteen minutes long, Bleed The Dream is five tracks stripped bare of any filler, instead going straight for the pummeling. Opener ‘Anemoia’ begins with what sounds almost like an old telephone before discordant guitars wrap their barbed riffs around the throat and vocalist Tyler Norris commands with a savage, rasping fury. There’s a distinct modern hardcore edge to their sound, too, like on second track ‘Separation Souvenir  in its chugging guitars and pit-ready attitude. The spoken word breaks are dated, but here they’re spot on and they don’t feel gimmicky or overused, even amongst the twisted screams of “cross my heart and hope to die” that are ripped right out of that MySpace metalcore era.

None of this is to criticise the band – Bleed The Dream is inarguably great and it’s a stunning, modern showcase of just how good metalcore can be. Take ‘A Cardiac Winter’, that balances churning riffs and a barrage of snare hits against its brief, cleanly-sung chorus, that’s all the more impactful for its brevity. The closing title track is inarguably the star of the show, though. While the previous four tracks are all great, ‘Bleed The Dream’ takes all they did and amplifies it. Spoken word moments, vicious screams and the breakneck pace all build until an undeniably catchy chorus that’s simply built to be sung back to them at full volume. 

The clear Poison The Well influence is no bad thing and, though it does make for a somewhat unoriginal record, the execution is all there. Its short length, catchy hooks and sheer style makes it ideal for repeat listens and it’s plain to see why they’ve caught the eye of the aforementioned Dying Wish and upcoming hardcore label DAZE that they’re currently signed to. This is early 2000s metalcore in the best way, honed to a fine edge and delivered with panache. In a crowded genre, casting back to its early heyday and doing it this well is a surefire way to stand out.