Parkway Drive - KillingWith A Smile

Thu 3rd Nov, 2005 in Music Reviews

After a split with I Killed The Prom Queen, support slots for Chimaera and In Flames, an EP of their own, sold out live shows and more hype than any other Australian hardcore band has ever had, Parkway Drive release their debut full lengther.

Featuring production from Adam Dutkiewicz of Killswitch Engage, as well as landing themselves a spot on the ARIA charts, Parkway Drive are already making it in the mainstream hardcore scene.

Parkway Drive bring their own brand of hardcore onto the scene with Killing With A Smile. With ripping guitar work, vicious screams and growls and a sound that is unashamedly Australian, Parkway Drive are not only making waves in their home country, but also overseas. Most people who think of Byron Bay think of hippies and bead shops. Underneath all of the tourist attractions, however, is a flourishing hardcore scene. At the forefront is Parkway Drive, one of the most powerful bands in Australian hardcore.

While they aren’t doing anything incredibly new, their sound has a unique flavour. Breakdowns appear on almost every song, some of them being great, others being standard metalcore fare. Their EP, Don’t Close Your Eyes was fast, brutal and punishing. On Killing With A Smile, Parkway Drive take it further with songs like Blackout showing a new, much more deathy sound, while the breakdown in Picture Perfect, Pathetic is an extremely heavy moment, even for a band such as this. The album breakdowns have quite a few catchy moments and there are even a couple of softer points throughout. The album truly stands out during it’s more melodic points, noticibly influenced by European melodic death metal acts such as Soilwork. Leading the way for an international breakout of Australian hardcore, Parkway Drive’s debut is a very worthwhile album.

Musically, they are as good as they come for Australian hardcore. Lyrically, it’s obvious that they still have a way to go. Although there are some great one liners throughout the album, the overuse of a certain four letter word, as well as some just downright crap lines (“cry me a ….”) detract from the album. Although the lyrics are generally subpar, the vocal performance is excellent. Possessing a range and versatility that many hardcore vocalists don’t have, McCall is brilliant as both a frontman and a vocalist for Parkway Drive.

While the intensity of a live show is hard to duplicate on record, Dutkiewicz does a great job of bringing out McCall’s vocals. The production overall is thick and chunky. Though Killing With A Smile is being sensibly marketed with the fact that Dutkiewicz did produce it, the production is actually nothing special at all. Though not particularly good, it certainly isn’t bad and it does get the right mix of instruments (though the drums could perhaps be a bit louder). The drumming is, indeed, a great part of the album. Ben Gordon has certianly found an excellent style, which fits the music of the band perfectly. Guitarwise, the two guitarists manage to pull out some ripping solos which allow them to show off their ability without being detrimental to actual songs.

The album includes some good soft moments, most notably at the end of Romance Is Dead and at the beginning of It’s Hard To Speak Without A Tongue. These soft parts are something that the band are good at and should be taking far more advantage of. Fan favourite Smoke ‘Em If Ya Got ‘Em puts the band’s live intensity on display. As this song was a highlight of their last EP, Parkway Drive have added some better production and sounds to the track. Along with opener Gimme A D, Smoke ‘Em If Ya Got ‘Em sums up everything that the band are about, crushing riffs, heavy breakdowns, melodic guitar parts, technical drumming and emotional intensity all feature in these two songs. The emotional lead and riff at the end of is particularly amazing.

All in all, Killing With A Smile is a great effort from Parkway Drive. To realise that the band have come to this from nothing in just two years is astounding. Aside from some minor issues which will hopefully be fixed up on later releases, Parkway Drive have an extremely bright future ahead of them. Make sure you catch them live either on their headlining tour, or their tour with Every Time I Die.