Titans Eve bridges the metal generation gap on Life Apocalypse

Life Apocalypse (Independent)

Vancouver-based thrashers Titans Eve strike the perfect balance between tuneful, old-school, '80s–style metal and the more extreme variants that came to dominate in the '90s on its latest, Life Apocalypse. The vocals are growly and intense, but not so much that you can’t discern the lyrics, and the songs are fast and intricate, with complex solos traded between guitarist brothers Brian and Kyle Gamblin and a viciously fast double-kick pulse from drummer Casey Ory. But the music is not so dense and technique-oriented that the band loses all sight of melody or anthemic sing–along-ability. Finally, despite being metal classicists of a sort, they never sound (as compared to 3 Inches of Blood, say) in the slightest bit retro.

With Life Apocalypse, the band follows their “Paradise Lost on the DTES” debut album, The Divine Equal, with a highly introspective, intimate, and painful portrait of a life gone to utter shit. Less than cheery song titles (“Destined to Die”, “The Void”, “The Abyss”, and so forth) might suggest the whole thing is a downer, but—one maudlin mid-album misstep aside (the instrumental “A Wound That Never Heals ”)—there’s actually great power to be had here, a defiance of the whirlpool the album's protagonist is caught in. People looking for the strength to contend with their own private life apocalypses can do no wrong by looking here (or by checking out the band’s opening slot for Anvil on August 5 at the Rickshaw Theatre).