Memphis May Fire - 'Shapeshifter' - Album Review

BACKGROUND. Proper metalcore hitmakers of the highest order, to this day Memphis May Fire remain amongst the most iconic bands to emerge from the glorious late scene era. In terms of songwriting, not many of their contemporaries, who naturally vanished into oblivion, displayed such adaptability, flexibility and overall awareness of current trends, were preserved them in the last two decades. Perfectly reflective of what is popular and actively shaping the mainstream, the Texas quarted return once again in 2025 with a sweaty dose of modern heavy goodness on their electric seventh record Shapeshifter.

BAND. Fully merging in the early 2010s, Memphis May Fire saw a metalcore ecosystem in the brink of extintion, grinded down by repetition and predictability, and still mastered all genre norms and tropes to keep it alive, conserve and redhape its core, and become the very template of how modern metal should sound. When many of their classmates chose other directions or just hung the boots, Matty Mullins lead the crew forward to preserve the scene spirit with all its ups and downs, the charm and the cringe in equal but needed measures, and eventually became the very reason we now have most of the current genre heavyhitters the media takes for granted.

ALBUM. Expect envigorating high-octane metalcore, polished to near-obsessive perfection and befitting the Memphis May Fire brand and reputation. If you are here for intricate compositions, proggy experimentations or avant-garde genre blending, you came to the wrong place for this was never their forte. What remains their strongest side, however, is turning simplicity into a force of nature, operating confidently at the edge of being too predictable and accessible, without sacrificing the unique edge and punch that made them stand out of the crowd. And Shapeshifter does it so well and so effortlessly that it might just be their best record to date.

SONGS. Tried and tested, Memphis May Fire and Rise Records remain an unbreakable combo, responsible for some of the most emblematic bangers from the last fifteen years, and their latest effort Shapeshifter adds ten more to the bill. All but two of the tracks were already released in a well-planned campaign that kicked off last year with the bouncy 'Chaotic' and kept teasing pieces of the Shapeshifter puzzle all the way to last month's radio anthem 'The Other Side'. The rest fit perfectly within the dominant atmosphere and direction, adding variety and depth with the sudden bursts of energy in 'Overdose', 'Paralyzed' and the title single, the spontaneous combustion in 'Infection' and 'Necessary Evil', or the epic arena grandeur in 'Hell Is Empty' and 'Love Is War' - all forming a coherent and concise modern classic that should not be missed.

FUTURE. Memphis May Fire never aimed at breaking the rules or re-definining the game, but are unrivalled masters at perfecting the conventions and setting current standards impossibly high. You can argue that they tend to stick to their comfort zone but this is the zone they created and have expanded immensely since the 2010, a constant linear progression of maturing and evolving. There were signs of greatness all the way back in Unconditional (2014), certainly a massive jump in form in Remade In Misery (2022), but now with Shapeshifter we finally get the definitive statement of intent to be remembered as one of the greats. Expect their next step to be career-defining.

Memphis May Fire - 'Shapeshifter'

Country: USA (Texas)

Used: 28 March

Label: Rise Records

Tracklisting:

1. Chaotic

2. Infection

3. Overdose (ft. Blindside)

4. Paralyzed

5. Hell Is Empty

6. Necessary Evil

7. The Other Side

8. Shapeshifter

9. Versus

10. Love Is War