Adamantium When It Rains, It Pours

Orange County's Adamantium (fans of X-Men's Wolverine will know where the name comes from) recently released their second album on Indecision Records. 'When It Rains, It Pours' is a melting pot of metal styles, boiling over with strains of hardcore, noisecore, thrash and punk. While the album is undoubtedly metal, a subgenre is difficult to choose because it's all over the place. Adamantium could probably be accused of failing to properly differentiate one song from another. Some of the songs are a bit difficult to discern from others, and portions of the album run together. However, the lack of songwriting variety is not much of a stumbling block for Adamantium. While no particular song leaves a listener astounded, there are plenty of enjoyable, dare we say brilliant, portions of the album. Adamantium knows how to keep things interesting, and they often utilize abrupt tempo changes to separate themes. This attribute is evident right from the start as the album's title track kicks off with a driving noisecore passage, then quickly morphs into a thumping thrash fest. It's this brand of unpredictability that makes the album worth listening to. Tracks like the too-short "Defiance" and the super-meaty "Virus" are compelling reasons to add this album to your CD-changer. The vocals range from singing to slightly more than talking, but typically consist of violent ranting. Although the lyrics are sparse, they're also suprisingly interesting, if one bothers to read them. Bottom line: This is a heavy album. If you're looking for melodic interludes and songs to play for your parents, look elsewhere. However, if you like your music up-tempo, riff-heavy, and full of sick breakdowns, this one will easily satisfy your metalcore appetite.