Arsonists Get All The Girls are another new signing to Century Media Records, and their debut for the label (and second overall) The Game of Life sees the Santa Cruz six-piece combine lethal death metal, technical progressive metal, and raging metalcore into one hard-hitting sound. With two singers that also play keyboards, two guitar riffers, a bassist and drummer, Arsonists Get All The Girls (kind of a kooky name, I know) conjure up one hell of a huge wall of sound, long on massive, complex metal riffs, acrobatic drum fills, layers of screaming vocals, and plenty of keyboard washes. The band lists their influences as Dream Theater, Cryptopsy, Between the Buried and Me, and Despised Icon, and you can certainly hear all of them on The Game of Life, especially on raging numbers like "Cuffed To Your Ankles", "Save The Castle, Screw The Princess", and the dynamic interplay featured on the brutal cacaphony of "Taiwanese Troft Trouble". For a great example of complex prog-metal mixed with bludgeoning death metal, check out "13 Year Old Ruby", a wild piece with pummeling riffs, blazing synth passages, and varied screams and growls. Despite all the ferocity, there's a nice balance of melody floating through most of these songs, especially on "Robando De Los Muertos", with its fluid synth lines, harmony guitar parts, and breakneck rhythms.
Drawbacks? Well, there are very few, mainly that I'd like to hear some more guitar and keyboard solos from these guys next time around, and some of the vocals, expecially the maniacal screaming, gets a tad out of control at times. Otherwise this is solid stuff from a California band that can only continue to grow. As decent as this one is, I think the best is yet to come from Arsonists Get All The Girls. Then we'll see if they can indeed 'get all the girls'.
Track Listing
1. Business In The Front
2. Save The Castle, Screw The Princess
3. Mantipede
4. Cuffed To Your Ankles
5. Shoeshine For Neptune
6. To Get Eaten By The Rats
7. Tourtasia
8. Claiming Middle Age A Decade Early
9. Taiwanese Troft Trouble
10. 13 Year Old Ruby
11. Robando De Los Muertos
12. So You Think You Know About The Game Of Life
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