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March 2020 will forever be linked to two unrelated but equally key events - the official acknowledgement of the Covid-19 pandemic with the subsequent start of the endless isolation, and the release of In Hearts Wake's crushing single 'Worldwide Suicide'. I don't have to tell you how the former changed the entire world as we know it, but the latter also served as the wake up call that the planet is spinning out of control, and a reminder that music is a powerful tool to get people engaged (and enraged) when most needed. You can argue that four years later our civilasation is just as bad and hasn't learned anything from recent events, but for me in particular, nothing is the same and In Hearts Wake with their music and message in Kaliyuga (2020) stood at the heart of that radical change.
To no surprise, my personal Album of the Year for that same lifechanging 2020 was exaclty Kaliyuga. In comparison, a lof things are now different, including the band's lineup following Kyle Erich's admirably amicable but still surprising departure, but one thing remains untouched - In Heart Wake's uncompromisingly crushing sound and message. The road to their sixth official album Incarnation has been eventful, and despite taking four years in preparation, the band has been anything but quiet, first dropping the deluxe Kaliyuga Booster Pack (2022) and then releasing the absolute must-see documentary and accompaying soundtrack album Green Is The New Black (2022). Step by step, year upon year, all leading to the perfectly logical premiere of Incarnarnation at the peak of 2024.
To fully understand and preprare for the thrill ride that is this LP, just look at In Hearts Wake's socials for this particular sentence: "To us Incarnation feels like Divination's tough twin brother: pissed off with where the world is heading but still fighting for a future that isn't fixed", a revealing statement that perfectly sums up the entire release. As intended, the album is the faultless counterpart to Divination as seen from the distance of twelve crucial years, expectedly rough, unfiltered and direct, chanelling the anxiety and desperation of Kaliyuga into pure primal rage aimed at one final fight for existence.
Without hesitation, Incarnation can be labelled with a max 10/10 - a faultless banger, an instant classic and genre milestone, that is everything one might expect from a modern metalcore release. The dominant atmosphere, the relentless vocals, the tight drumming, the driven guitarwork, the pulsating bass, the subtle production tricks, the cleverly reversed song titles, the guest appearances, the concise tracklist, the devastating breakdowns, the emotional charge, the accompanying videos, the subtle layers, the overal message, the determined delivery, everything is impecable. And despite dropping mid-Summer with half of 2024 still ahead of us, I am certain this will be my personal Album of the Year with no competition, for it will take a second generation-defining release to steal its top spot.
Incarnation is an introspective journey back to the band's inspired beginning, completing a cycle that started 12 years ago with an exemplary album that remains a genre classic and fan favourite to this day. It is a symbolic rework of their iconic debut with a modern twist that sees In Hearts Wake elevate their musicianship to unreachable highs. It is a shame that Kyle isn't officially part of this, for his talent and personality have always been inseparable from the band since its inception, and yet sometimes it takes a catalyst like a major lineup change to really give artists the push they need to take it to the next level, and the remaining four members have responded with admirable resilience and determination.
Cutting right to the chase, the supercharged 'Spitting Nails' sets the proper tone and tempo for Incarnation to maintain in all its nuclear 40 minutes, before we enter the familar territories of the plummeting rager 'Hollow Bone'. The uncontainable third single 'The Flood' sees a familiar face making a welcome return, with the sheer force of nature Winston McCall unleashing his trademark fury on one of this album's climaxes, much like he did back on 'Departure'. We then go through the psychosis, exasperation and total devastation of tracks like 'Orphan', 'Shishigami' and 'Michigama', without losing touch with In Hearts Wake's signature dystopian, post-apocalyptic, chants and melodies as heard in 'Gen Doom', 'Feeding the Dead' and 'Shellshock'. And then it all ends with a blast in the timeless 'Carrion'-esque arena anthem 'Transmission', somehow packed with optimism and hope for a brighter future.
Speaking of brilliant guest appearances and the cyclic nature of Incarnarion, it is worth mentioning that it is not only Parkway Drive's Winston making a thunderous comeback, but two other OGs that appeared on Divination also team up with Jake behind the mic - Garrett Rapp (The Color Morale) on 'Shellshock' and Chad Ruhlig (For The Fallen Dreams) on 'Michigama'. Tha last track also sees members of King 810 and Heartsick join the madness whilst it is Paledusk's Kaito Nagai delivering his bonecrushing shrieks on 'Shishigami', all of them added to In Hearts Wake's pantheon of iconic features that already boasts Northlane, The Amity Affliction, The Ghost Inside, Hacktivist, Polaris, Alpha Wolf, even Georgia Flood.
This LP simultaneously marks a new beginning for In Hearts Wake and completes an album cycle that has provided us with some the finest and most meaningful conceptual songwriting across the scene. Following the prophetic introduction in Divination, we got to enjoy the thrilling elemental saga of Earthwalker, Skydancer, Ark and Kaliyuga, before going back to the spiritual roots for Incarnation. And in symbolic comparison to the 2020 classic, if Kaliyuga was a cry for help and an urgent call to action, we no longer have the luxury of warnings, reminders and discussion, and this new LP serves as the soundtrack for a fight for survival and a ralying shout for a battle that has already started, with In Hearts Wake at the frontline and the doomsday clock ticking louder than ever at the background.
Incarnation is an album to be proud of, the sort if release that leaves a mark on the listeners, the genre, the scene, the world. It is that unique and somewhat rare type of a complete and concise album that you actually return to in its entirety, with literally all songs remaining on repeat for years. It is one of those beautiful moments of shared celebration of the music we all love, for the band, for the local community, for the global fanbase, for their label UNFD, for their friends and families, for the other artists that have joined them along the ride, for Kyle, for me and you, and everyone that joins in the ride.
In Hearts Wake - 'Incarnation'
Country: Australia
Released: 12 July 2024
Label: UNFD
Tracklisting:
1. Spitting Nails (ǝunʇɹoɟ ɟo lǝǝɥʍ)
2. Hollow Bone (plɹoʍ ǝɥʇ)
3. The Flood (ǝɔᴉʇsnɾ) feat. Winston McCall
4. Orphan (lᴉʌǝp ǝɥʇ)
5. Gen Doom (ʇuɐɥdoɹǝᴉɥ ǝɥʇ)
6. Shishigami シシ神 (ssǝɹdɯǝ ǝɥʇ) feat. Kaito Nagai
7. Tyrant (ɹoɹǝdɯǝ ǝɥʇ)
8. Feeding The Dead (ǝɔuɐɹǝdɯǝʇ)
9. Michigama (uɐᴉɔᴉƃɐɯ ǝɥʇ) feat. For The Fallen Dreams, Heartsick, King 810, Don
10. Shellshock (ssǝʇsǝᴉɹd ɥƃᴉɥ ǝɥʇ) feat. The Color Morale
11. Transmission (uns ǝɥʇ)
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