27th June 2024

Review: “My Family” by Embrace Your Punishment (15th Anniversary)

After an initial five year run under another name, Northern French Deathcore machine Embrace Your Punishment told the World to brace for impact on July 1st 2009 as they dropped their debut EP “My Family” like a neutron bomb. Since then the four piece have maintained a steady pace and chosen quality over quantity, unveiling a trio of lethal albums on an average of one every five years, gradually evolving their sound from a fusion of Deathcore and Hardcore in the early days to one that fuses Groove laden Brutal Death Metal with Metallic Hardcore in the present. Now on the fifteenth anniversary of their debut EP we return to it for an honorary review based on the fact that their third album “Made Of Stone” is a masterclass…

As the storm clouds gather overhead the 90’s inspired riffs are locked into place in menacing and direct fashion as Vivien Rue opens up the arteries with a slam vocal giving “Smile Of A Killer” almost instant shape, form and mosh pit worthy appeal. Blast beats from the kit are ferocious, the raw drum sound driving things forward as Geoffroy Mansard delivers a plethora of breakdowns, the gang chant perfectly timed. While the overall sound is a little on the raw side that very much plays to the bands strengths, their sonic abrasions cutting through the skull like a hot knife through butter. That instant head bang appeal then flows into “Die In This World“, Rue once again impressing with violent bursts of Slam vocals before a vicious, serpent tongued chorus strikes a nice balance in severity levels. A downtempo moment in the middle is a touch of class, as is a false ending that goes off like a nail bomb when it picks back up, a sinister solo and gang chant the sucker punch in the face that you simply didn’t see coming. The grand finale is one of those epic breakdowns that simply keeping coming, a piece of pure soul food you’ll want to come back to time and again. The title track “My Family” rounds out the collection, taking what came before it and trampling it into dust with jackhammer footwork and pummelling fills, groove laden bass and a whole lot more Slam vocal. Electrifyingly energetic to the last, Americans would call it work out music, we call it a sanity saving record, pure, simple and unforgettable, all that’s missing is a chant of “Bury Your F***ing Dead!” [8/10]

Track Listing