Today’s review is going to be quite brief, since it’s about a fairly short EP and the band’s previous release dates back barely two years. However, I could not pass up on it completely so here we go: Blanket Hill‘s When Fire Learns To Speak!
The band has definitely found the sweet spot for their sound and is building on it further, with small additional experiments. The essence of the four songs is very similar to the previous album, but I feel like the quintet is leaning further into crossover thrash than previously and it works really well.
Instrumentally speaking, these thirteen minutes deliver everything a hardcore heart could wish for: the typical two-step riffs, the moshpit inviting breakdowns and the headbang inducing chugs, all while sounding really massive thanks to the flawless production.
The vocals are by and large the same, but two instances stood out quite a bit to me: the French rap verses on one song and the very melodic chorus on another. While both are fairly brief, I feel like they added quite an interesting contrast to the predominantly spoken word screams.
All in all, this EP feels like a stepping stone between two albums, in the best way possible. I am excited to see where Blanket Hill is heading next, because When Fire Learns To Speak shows that they can repeatedly deliver high quality tunes. The EP will be out this Friday, February 28th, and in the meantime you can check their Facebook and listen to the song below.