After the tragic passing in December 2023 of drummer Cayle Sain put a stop on the rise of Mizery the band is back using pre production demos Cayle had to help put out the bands self titled EP, their first new music release in nearly a decade.
Sadly though the crossover thrash / hardcore sound I was expecting was only half present. The EP itself feels like a collection of sounds the band was going to experiment with at various times. ‘Renegade Rhythm’ wears its Body Count / Rage Against The Machine influence on its sleeves while ‘The Weapon Pt. II’ is that crossover sound fans will want to pit for. ‘The Weapon Pt. 1’ is a quick instrumental bit that on an already short EP only continues to throw off the pacing here it felt.
Ending with ‘Eulogy’ (ft. Sammy Ciaramitaro of Drain) sees the band end on a rap rock note mixed with Deftones type sound. The sound feels like it goes through several different genres and would have been a major hit in the nu metal era.
Mizery’s self-titled EP feels like it wants to hit hard, but never quite lands the punch. There are flashes of potential here—with songs not being bad but also not really hitting the way I wanted—but they’re buried under an EP that I feel like never is able to find its own identity. It is great though that not only is the band back but they were able to honor Sain by putting out a record that had his influence and playing on it.
Score :
2.5 / 5
