Every Hour Kills begin their new album Fragile Machine with the track NumLock, setting the tone for the metallically electrified release. It begins with a fast-paced string of notes amidst spacy keys flittering in the background. The track immediately reflects the album cover: a cube admitting a light while floating in starry space next to what appears to be a ship. Obviously art can be interpreted in many ways so I would advise taking a look and a listen at everyhourkills.bandcamp.com. You might form your own vision of the cover art.
As a listener, I feel like I’m entering the band’s own head-space, vast in idea while centralized in song. High-pitched keys float in, almost ghost-like, and full of anticipation as the notes climb higher – a perfect lead into the verse when the energy crashes in like a comet. The bass drops hard and fast, cementing the style alongside progressive metal mixed with futuristic electronica. The drums and bass fall out right before the chorus, leaving the audience on the edge and salivating for more of this melodic metal-core. The vocals are powerful, shining through the heavy mix like sunlight through space and highlighting the lyrical depth of the song.
Certain lyrics particularly speak to my soul as the singer calls out, “Hate is the burden of the sad man”, displaying the dichotomy of emotion while showcasing the inherent similarities between such intense feelings as hatred and sadness. Even the namesake Every Hour Kills exhibits thoughtfulness. Neil Gaiman, a personal favorite of mine, wrote in his amazing novel American Gods that “Every hour wounds. The last one kills,” spoken through the narrator in the third chapter. However, Gaiman was inspired by an old Latin proverb: “Vulnerant omnia, ultima necat” (All the hours wound you, the last one kills). Every Hour Kills have combined the statement into something ultimately true in such a way that makes people think with just three words, and if there’s anything I’ve learned from writing, it’s that conciseness is key. It’s as if they’re reminding us that time is the eternal burden, and as each hour passes, one can only approach the end. I’d recommend listening to the rest of the album to form your own opinions on the astutely and artistically energized Every Hour Kills.
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