Finding themselves thrust into the extreme metal spotlight after the relative success of 2007 debut ‘The Somantic Defilement’, Tennessee mob Whitechapel mark their Metal Blade debut and sophomore release with a brutalising, pulsating set of deathcore anthems. Both crushingly heavy and curiously catchy like the very best brand of death metal, ‘This Is Exile’ is a prime example of how to stick to the genre’s roots while sounding refreshingly 21st century in the process.

    It is difficult to pick particular highlights from an album that keeps at a glorious pace from the outset, but ‘To All That Are Dead’ is a distinctly fierce number that shakes the cockles, while instrumental piece ‘Death Becomes Him’ is a tutorial in how to produce melancholy without slowing the tempo. Either way, this is an excellent extreme metal record that will have scene-sharers like Job For A Cowboy looking just a bit nervously over their shoulders.

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