THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA go on a zombie rampage.
PRIVATE VENUE, USA
Ohio metalcore misfits resurrect the undead for their livestream
FOR FANS WHO have stuck with The Devil Wears Prada since the start, the band’s Zombie
EP was a game-changer that distinguished them from the homogenous metalcore horde. So in April, when they announced they would be releasing a sequel, ZII, and playing it in full during a livestream, it sent a jolt of excitement through their fanbase. Many will be hoping for a return to the merciless heaviness of that EP, but TDWP are now a very different band to the one that recorded Zombie in 2010.
To make that point, as the Ohioans take to the dimly lit stage, they kick things off with a short set that shows the extent of their evolution over the last decade. From Dead Throne’s eviscerating assault to the bouncy hooks of Worldwide and incendiary post-metal burner To The Key Of Evergreen, which ends with the band bathed in white light, it’s a reminder of just how far they’ve pushed the boundaries of their music.
That progression means that ZII is a very different beast to its predecessor. In 2010,
Zombie startled fans with its brutality, and while mouth-foaming EP opener Nightfall and
Termination are similarly bruising, with vocalist Mike Hranica stalking the stage in a glare of low, red lights, TDWP have long shed that onedimensional skin of old. Elsewhere, melody that has infiltrated their sound in recent years pokes through the aggression. Forlorn and Nora brood and simmer, culminating in a searing white-hot blaze of guitars, before Contagion brings things to a close, guitarist Jeremy Depoyster laying down fragile cleans over a skeletal piano.
As far as livestreams go, this one is pretty straightforward, with unfussy production and camera work, but it perfectly captures TDWP’S journey to get to this point, and how, even now, they continue to grow and surprise.
DANNII LEIVERS