I remember asking Bleed From Within’s singer Scott Kennedy at Bloodstock 2021, “Why are you guys not massive yet?” A well-intentioned question having just watched them destroy the crowd at the RJD stage, but one that was perhaps difficult for him to answer. After all there’s no doubt that Scott and the band had been putting everything into their music for years. But success in the music industry is either quick and pressured, or a long game. For Bleed From Within the long game seems to be paying off.
Having watched them open for bands at the Academy and the Hydro, and in both cases listening to Scott say how humbled and excited he is to be playing stages at venues where he used to watch bands, I’m bouncing for them to be headlining two sold-out shows at the legendary Barrowlands later this year. They’ll be showcasing the new album, from which a couple of singles have already been released… so what about the other tracks?
From the opening build to “Violent Nature” erupting in a flurry of drums and a roar from Scott, you immediately know what you’re in for. Unrelenting and pounding for its entire duration with an element of groove it lives up to its name, barely giving the listener / mosher a chance to draw breath. If you’re not swinging elbows, you’re screaming the lyrics. “Agents of chaos” indeed. Frankly, it sums the band up in four minutes. Like this and you may as well buy their back catalogue.
It’s not like they’ve shot their load too early, either. Each track that follows is as good as the last, crushing and angry, loud and abrasive, yet technical and inventive also. The additional background production on “In Place of Your Halo” along with it’s more downtuned and rhythmic approach makes it less of a violent outburst compared to the opening track (slightly!). And then there’s that breakdown. Has a band at this end of the metal spectrum ever used bagpipes in a song before? Has such a band ever had them live on stage for the song’s live home debut in Glasgow? Yeah, sorry Slipknot fans, but that is the memory from last December’s gig that I’m going to carry around long term.
If you like what we do, consider joining us on Patreon for as little as £1 per month!
The title track throws “haunting” into the mix alongside some of the most brutal riffing I think I’ve ever heard from the band, while the more old-school metal sounding “God Complex” (complete with “Hey! Hey!” fist pumping moments) can be listened to below.
“A Hope In Hell” really shows the band’s range, being the closest thing to a stadium ballad you’re ever likely to get from Bleed From Within. Clean vocals alongside Scott’s usual harsh ones show that the band aren’t afraid to expand on their sound. Then there’s the intro to “Dying Sun”, indeed the track as a whole, which chugs mercilessly along like a metal juggernaut.
Throwing some clean guitars and guest vocals from Mastodon’s Brann Dailor into the mix, “Immortal Desire” is an eclectic mix, and is matched by Sylosis’ Josh Middleton appearing on “Hand of Sin”. Hey, if your drummer is going to be in both bands then why not get the singer to pop in for a visit, right?
“Chained To Hate” takes its attitude from the opening song… and ramps up the speed 100% for the thrash-inspired mid-song blasts. Holy crap, it shreds! “Known By No Name” could be mistaken for a goth/industrial track at first, and ends up being a death/industrial track by the time it’s played through. It also has one of the most hair-on-the-back-of-your-neck-erecting uses of a choral hit in the pre-chorus that you’ll ever hear.
Rounding things off is a bit of an oddball track, “Edge of Infinity”. It gives the band a chance to show off the skills you don’t really hear in the other songs. Clean piano, acoustic guitars, good old fashioned soaring metal guitar solos… Slightly out of place compared to the other songs and yet it fits perfectly as a closer to proceedings.
Zenith‘s strength is that it’s heavy as all hell, but not in the same way with every song. It pummels, blasts, beats you up… but using so many wonderful techniques. Bleed From Within were correct to title it the way they have, and for the right reason. They genuinely are at the highest point of their career. So far!
Bleed From Within continue the long, slow journey to world domination. We can only thank them for letting us come along for the ride.
Don’t fancy Patreon? Buy us a one-off beverage!
Pre-order and pre-save Zenith now – it’s out on April 4th
Header image by Tom Armstrong
Check out all the bands we review in 2025 on our Spotify and YouTube
Bleed From Within: official | facebook | twitter | instagram | spotify | youtube
