Album Review

The Browning - Burn This WorldThe Browning – Burn This World

The Browning have only been a full complete band for 3 months and are already dropping their debut album. Being fronted by ex-As Blood Runs Black vocalist Jonny McBee who also produced the record definitely gives some expectations of what kind of sound the band will have opted for and having managed to ink a deal with Earache Records it is obvious the band is wasting no time trying to kick start their career. It’s not about credentials with a band like this because even the best musicians can crash and burn when they get too arrogant; it’s about the sound, the performance and the feeling.

Now I was never a fan of As Blood Runs Black; they are an extremely heavy metal band, breakdowns everywhere, heavy distortion and quick drumming. The Browning also take the heavier approach but the main element of their sound is the rave inspired electronics; everything else is still there, the breakdowns, heavy distortion and quick drumming but it’s this stylistic choice that makes their music a lot more interesting. The vocals fit perfectly too, they aren’t “brutal” so to speak but more aggressive, a cross between Jamey Jasta and Randy Blythe if you could imagine.

The best song in my opinion hands down is “Standing on the Edge”, it’s just got such a great vibe and is ridiculously infectious; picture if you will one of the world’s biggest dance anthems combined with a more refined version of As Blood Runs Black. If you’re looking for a comparison, take out the melodic singing from Dead By April and then make it heavier, that would effectively be The Browning; “Not Alone” is the track that shows that analogy the best. This style of music is so fresh and some of the things they do with it are amazing; “Burn This World” has an orchestral feel purely from electronics, “Ashamed” has a dubstep-esque intro that crops up during parts of the song and many other different tweaks.

I honestly like ever single song on this album; in such a short time-span and with a low budget how they’ve managed to put this much effort and energy into a debut album is just astonishing. The problem is with people these days being judgemental and close-minded when it comes to music people will slate the band for simply that combination without even giving it a chance, with any luck the sheer standard of metal that the band performs will win people over. I would definitely love to see this live as the atmosphere the music could create is something that excites me greatly, absolutely tremendous.

4.5/5

Review by James Webb

 Band Members

Jonny McBee
Noah Robertson
Jesse Glidewell
Collin Woroniak
 Track Listing
1. No Escape
2. Not Alone
3. Bloodlust
4. Standing on the Edge
5. Burn This World
6. Ashamed
7. Living Dead
8. Forgotten
9. Time Will Tell
10. Tragedy of Perfection
11. Dominator
12. I Choose You
13. The Sadist
 Band Related Links
The Browning Facebook
 Review Score Code
- Top Cheese
- Brilliant
- Pretty damn good
- Ok I guess
- What Was That?