Review: “DIVID” by Beyond The Styx

Raising hell across Europe since 2011, French Metallic Hardcore crew Beyond The Styx have more than 300 shows under their belts, having turned stages to sawdust with everyone from Sepultura to Terror and Malevolence to The Acacia Strain, while also appearing at festivals such as Hellfest and Motocultor Festival. Their sound manifests a dark and violent musical universe at the crossroads of Hardcore Punk, Thrash and even Death Metal as the band believe there are no borders or boundaries when it comes to music. A notion that has served them well over a demo, an EP and three well received albums. Recorded, engineered, mixed and mastered in July 2025 at Cornerstone Audio by Daan Nieboer (Clench Your Fist, Adversary, Swanslaughter) in Luttenberg Netherlands, their latest burnt offering is “DIVID“. A record which has over arching themes about a world stuck in permanent conflict, where inherited hatred, social indifference, war, environmental collapse and personal breakdown feed an endless cycle of division…

There are flavours of bands like Knocked Loose in the politically charged and socially aware “Dust Off“, a neck snapping barbed opening cut that finds Okan Deniz from I Am Revenge lending this throat. Gang chants and two step moments chemically enhance the punchy staccato riff breaks as vocalist Emile spits pure venom and as one firecracker deserves another, follow up “Bystander” hits just as hard. A cut that calls for change starting from within, it commands the attention with abrasive guitars and thunderous percussion, Nieboer deserving a lot of credit for his work at the mixing desk. As the world continues to circle the drain “Never Ending War” feels like a sucker punch from a person scorned, the soundscape a rolling tank of dark energy that destroys everything in its path in brutal fashion. There is no time for ambient passages or vibrant solos, just dark, barbed rhythms and savage breakdowns.

There are some classy leads at the start of the bombastic “Chaosystem“, a cut designed from the ground up to put bounce in the mosh pit, this albums worth of incendiary angry anthems more than enough to keep them on the road for the next couple of years. They’ve managed to capture their notorious live energy like lightening in a bottle on this one, everything being at that adrenalised level of insanity where you feel every cymbal hit and bass rumble as if it was running through your very soul. The second of two guest appearances on the album sees Delphine from Sisterhood Issues join for “Flowerviolence” and this one is like jumping on an electric fence. An intense flow of Metallic Hardcore hotter than lava, this 121 second vicious tirade just about gives time for a bass solo to be shoehorned in as the two vocalists go toe to toe.

It pays to expect the unexpected and an almost cinematic atmospheric opening fifty seconds to “Anyøne” gives the album a palate cleansing moment for everything to just breathe. It’s vital given the sheer intensity of these tracks and helps break a cycle that could have ended up a little monotonous in the wrong conditions. What follows is a shade slower as the band crank up the groove orientated riffs with a couple of moments of beatdown and two step thrown in for good measure. Glitchy guitars rise to the surface in the full throttle “Graveyard FS“, a track upon which drummer Adrien is allowed to get inventive with blast beats, gravity blasting and a couple of classy cymbal catches. All of that serves as a timely reminder of just how vital a cog in the machine he is because his performances are immense.

It might circle the drain of being an innuendo but there is no pun intended with the vicious little ditty that is “Kiss of the Cobra“, the track bouncing skulls off all four walls as the band get seriously fierce once more. The breakdown is so powerful it should register as seismic activity and there are a few won’t see it coming before it sweeps them off their feet. Arguably the finest cut of the collection “Deadlock V” feels like being slapped in the face over and over by a concrete slab. The spine juddering riffs and huge percussion sound is almost monumental at this point and while you might not think it possible, there are actually nuances hidden in the mix that burst and pop over repeated listens. Once more with feeling? Why the f*** not? “Storm of Life” ensures this album is all killer no filler, gang chants and spoken word giving it another dimension as Beyond The Styx go for the jugular once more. You can hear how much these songs mean to Emile in every vocal performance on the album, his emotively tinged screams something that should encourage you to the lyric sheet once the headbanging is over [8.5/10]

Track Listing

1. Dust Off (ft. Okan Deniz from I Am Revenge)
2. Bystander
3. Never Ending War
4. Chaosystem
5. Flowerviolence (ft. Delphine from Sisterhood Issues)
6. Anyøne
7. Graveyard FS
8. Kiss of the Cobra
9. Deadlock V
10. Storm of Life

“DIVID” by Beyond The Styx is out 8th May 2026 via Innerstrength Records