Band:	Heart Of A Coward
Album:	This Place Only Brings Death
Style:	Metalcore
Release date:	September 2023

01. This Place Only Brings Death
02. Captor
03. Surrender To Failure
04. Devour Me
05. Decay
06. Ghost
07. Hex
08. Passenger
09. Dehumanise
10. All Life Is Finite

Not an album to listen to at the hospital.

In terms of aptly named titles, Heart Of A Coward may have cut closer to the bone than they thought when they named their fifth, and latest, album This Place Only Brings Death, as the title sums up the creative cul-de-sac that the band have found themselves in. As many of their erstwhile rivals in the British metalcore scene have been climbing further up the ladder to larger venues and bigger audiences, it is hard not to feel that Heart Of A Coward are being left behind; while heavier than their counterparts, they have stuck closest to their original style, leaving them true to their roots, but also falling behind in a crowded scene. This Place Only Brings Death is yet another good slab of technical metalcore from the group, one of their strongest efforts in years, but it is also one that feels like a retread of past glories, as if the band are turning in on themselves rather than branching out.

Fans of technical metalcore (if such a niche exists) will find much of This Place Only Brings Death more than serviceable, with the quality of offerings on here being consistently good, though rarely punching above their weight. "Devour Me" finds the band's mix of melodic choruses and heavy verses reach its apex, while "All Life Is Finite" does close out the album with a bang.

Having made his mark on The Disconnect, Tasan fits the band's sound like a glove, having a good mix of melody and power in his vocals, as highlighted on "Surrender To Failure", whose chorus reminds me of The Defiled (a reference that maybe one or two you out there will get). Ayers and Haycock once again bring the djent-meets-metalcore style with riffs like that of "Ghost", something that does get the blood flowing, though does feel somewhat limiting. The album is well produced, capturing the band's sound like lightning in a bottle, striking a balance that allows all elements to be audible and have breathing space to enable them to not crowd each other out.

It's hard not to feel that the band are straining at the leash creatively, with the likes of "Hex" and "Decay" wanting to stretch the boundaries of the group's sound, but like a rubber band, ending up pulled back into place. It is a shame, as these songs offer hope from the main problem with This Place Only Brings Death, that being much of the album following the same 'chugs with melodic chorus' pattern; by the end, you're left feeling like the band need to break the habit once in a while, rather than serve up another "Passenger". Heart Of A Coward evidently have the talent, and I do commend them for sticking to their roots, but I can't help feel it's time for the band to shake things up a bit, and experiment with their sound rather than tinker at the edges.

With the band finding themselves falling further behind from their peers, they need to deliver more than a serviceable album that offers up more of the same. Heart Of A Coward need to gamble and shake things up a bit more with their future efforts unless they want to find themselves falling into the nostalgia category of bands compared with their peers. This Place Only Brings Death is good at what it does, but it will have a hard time finding an audience for itself.