Threatpoint are a groove metal band from Pennsylvania, pushing the genre to extreme boundaries on their third studio album R.I.P.

By Jane Howkins

Their music is described as being within the groove metal genre, however we feel it’s a little heavier than that. That isn’t a criticism though, as the music they play is largely excellent, but those looking for something a bit more groovy may be a little surprised by what they find.

There’s also a slight industrial feel to their music, with some atmospheric starts to their songs. The style is almost similar to the nu-metal genre in a way but, don’t worry, there’s no rapping here, with vocalist Chris James screaming along to each of the twelve tracks with a ferocious roar. The nu-metal parts are like what nu-metal should have been, with the ridiculousness taken out and a more hardcore metal edge added. There are elements of thrash metal, death metal, and power metal included in the band’s sound, with some of the riffs even having a slight folk metal melody to them at times.

There are also some nice tempo changes at play, with fifth track Light Bleeds Through combining soft verses with a heavy chorus and a prominent bass riff that leads the song, something quite interesting and unusual for a band of this genre. It’s at moments like these that James shows the full range of his voice. Whilst the majority of Threatpoint’s songs feature screaming vocals, it is also made apparent that James can sing, and it would be great to be able to hear a little bit more of this side of the band next time around.

R.I.P. is fast, hard, and drives straight to the point, with a range of metallic styles combining to produce a really interesting sound for the band. Simply put, we think Threatpoint are great, and like any great band, the more you listen to them the more you uncover.

R.I.P. by Threatpoint is available now.