If you listen to a lot of contemporary metalcore records, you develop a certain weariness; a low tolerance for trends, copying, spot-the-difference and heard-it-before sounds that leave you wishing for something different. Shields then send you their new record and, well, you asked for it.
Shields are not a new band. They folded back in 2018 after the tragic loss of their founding guitarist George Christie. This means that ‘Death & Connection’ is more than a comeback record. After seven years away, it’s a chance to process that loss. Indeed, it’s an album defined and haunted by it. In many ways, it is a lot.
Setting things off on a divisive foot, the album opens with a spoken-word passage explicitly about death. Titled ‘This Is Not A Dream’, it’s mildly derivative, but clearly heart on sleeve. Then, out of nowhere, it throws a guttural C-Bomb that jars at odds with the piece’s tone, followed by Garth Marenghi styled synths. There’s no doubting its sincerity yet its delivery feels…
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