Tragedy Of The Commons

01. Kerosene02. Echoes Of War03. Lost In The Outline04. Forsaken05. Ghost In Flesh06. Writhe07. Genocide08. Hymn of Decay09. Chapel Paralysis10. Reality/Relapse11. God Is A Loaded GunThere was always something quietly impressive about GREAT AMERICAN GHOST. One of the most adventurous and musically fearless bands to emerge from the amorphous metalcore maelstrom over the last few years, they have established themselves as a serious proposition for serious times. Hardcore needs regular upgrades, and previous records like 2020’s “Power Through Terror” juggled new hybrids with great skill and lashings of venom.But this is different. “Tragedy Of The Commons” will delight anyone who has enjoyed previous efforts from the Boston bruisers, but there are new developments taking place in real time here. The opening “Kerosene” is nothing short of startling. Still rooted in riffs and hardcore tempos, it showcases the transformation of GREAT AMERICAN GHOST from modern metal mavericks to noise-blasting, industrial subversives. Deliriously noisy and closer in spirit to UNIFORM or FULL OF HELL than NINE INCH NAILS, it provides “Tragedy Of The Commons” with an introductory shock-to-the-system that leaves a lasting scar.In light of such an unexpected revelation, songs like “Echoes Of War” and “Lost In The Outline” probably seem less devastating, at least at first glance. But this band have made a wholesale leap into the unknown, both in terms of industrial surprises and the overall sophistication of their songwriting. “Echoes Of War” may dabble in the predictable melodies of post-hardcore, but it’s an ingenious take on the form. Likewise, “Lost In The Outline” eschews redundant metalcore tropes in favor of twisted deathcore sludge and huge surges of melody-led emotion. The soaring, post-grunge emoting of “Forsaken” might seem cloying and overdone in a different context, but GREAT AMERICAN GHOST never fail to spice up even their most straightforward moments with disgusting, mutant death metal riffs. A bewildering three-songs-in-one, “Ghost In Flesh” is a blur of crestfallen rage and haphazard aggression. “Writhe” gives the initial impression that it will be a mid-album oasis of calm, before morphing into something ugly and vicious, machine-gun drums clashing with frontman Ethan Harrison’s incensed bark. Everything is taut with fury but avowedly eccentric with it. And then “Genocide” arrives, marking the return of the politically supercharged, quasi-industrial version of GREAT AMERICAN GHOST. If this is a future direction that the band are seriously considering, they could do a lot worse. “Genocide” is scabrous and blank-eyed, with an outer carapace of hostile noise and an inner core of robotic metal swagger. Real world disdain drips from every glitched-out riff and overdriven thud.It may be important to add that this is not some CODE ORANGE-style freakout. The rulebook is being lightly singed here, rather than set ablaze, and there is more than enough traditional, 21st century metalcore lurking in these songs to allay fears that GREAT AMERICAN GHOST have veered completely off course. But there is no mistaking the sound of a great band finding new and exciting ways to smash the place up and then leaving a pile of smoking rubble in their wake. Ferocious.[embedded content]