WALK IN COMA | ALBUM REVIEW

Don’t you just love starting your Monday morning listening to a catchy intro hook followed by a thick arse breakdown? Then dear readers, you will love Essex based, scene veteran, modern metal band: Walk in Coma. Starting their musical journey in 2006 with two humble school mates deciding to try their luck at forming a band. Establishing their sound in the alternative scene on supporting line ups with the likes of Funeral for a Friend and Breed 77, in addition to their bassist joining in 2010. Currently they are making a comeback on their upcoming EP titled Human Condition.

Starting at the beginning, Walk in Coma builds tension with layered synthesisers giving Ritual a destructive tonality. As pressure rises we begin to catch a hint of atmospheric drums in the distance. For ninety seconds we are wandering through the song's ambience, wondering where we will end up next. Oh wait never mind ‘we [are] starting fires’. Aggressive delivery from the vocalist from the get go supported flawlessly by the groove laden riff. That said, we are thrown a melodic curveball with an unwinding, harmonic verse flowing seamlessly into the outro. The accompaniment of the guttural vocal fry combined with melancholic pleaful vocals brings an interesting conclusion to the song with both vocals fighting for dominance.

Ending with the enraged vocalist as the victor making their final point, ‘I don’t want to die’

Let’s get into my favourite track of the EP, originally released as a single in 2023, Suffer.

Immediately we are throwing our heads back and spin kicking the air at the aggressive opening verse. Not before the vigorous drumming grabs our attention, sending the listener into a frenzy trying to keep up with the vocals in a style that feels reminiscent of Left Behind by Slipknot, who happens to be one of their influences. However, the song is brought back into focus with a continual cymbal that I can only describe as a resounding triangle. After a swift pause we are straight back into that catchy chorus, being reassured ‘it’s not the end of the world’, even if the vocalist ‘can’t go on’. The groove of the song has the listener wanting to get up and move, or head butt someone in a moshpit, whatever your preference may be. I don’t know what the ‘fuck [I] owe’ these guys but they have got me wanting to pay.

Breezing into track three with an atmospheric intro that’s giving the listener a false sense of

security. There is no way a song called Dead Reckoning is going to be a smooth one, and at

0:39 how right we are proven. Low tuned riffs supplementing drawn out vocals in a slow yet

deliberate performance. There is something about this song ‘I can’t resist’. You can’t help but be ‘pulled’ into the hypnotic mix of growling vocals creeping ‘in[to]’ a mournful bridge that has a touch of emotional imperfection.

Now we follow into the penultimate song of the EP, God of Gaps. Following a similar

methodology to Dead Reckoning, we feel like we are being begged and screamed at. Keeping it calm for twenty seconds before bringing back those brutal guitar riffs. Stylistically they’re switching it up by combining a ballad style chorus alongside deep growls, keeping the audience on their toes in a (good) anxiety-inducing spiral. A technique that feels reminiscent of one of their key comparators, Machine Head. A moment of respite with a clean guitar verse and airy soft cymbals.

Finishing strong on a visceral number and the title track of the EP, Human Condition. Dejected lyrics building a desolate image alongside the crestfallen atmosphere. They’re ‘stuck in a rut’ with nowhere else to go ‘time’s up, [and they’re] out of fucks’. Guitars take more of a central role in the finale, holding the listeners attention throughout with a low, thick tuning. I NEED to ask the vocalist that sings the chorus who broke his heart because what story has you sounding like you’ve lost all hope and are ‘selling your soul’?? The duality of ‘don’t sell your soul when you can give it away’ in the chorus compared to the opening line ‘Bleeding from your blinded mind’ has me in a frenzy, not being able to keep up. Are you the metaphorical hero or the villain?

Bringing the song to a close on a piano solo, feeling symbolic of new beginnings.

This EP clearly has overarching themes of reaching your goals and overcoming obstacles no

matter the cost. I would be curious to know where this inspiration comes from, and if this will

remain a continual narrative for future releases. And I haven’t even gotten into the quality of the EP! It can be described as an emotionally driven yet refined piece. Keeping the composition in every song homogenous, flowing elegantly track by track from beginning to end.

Just as the album is worth every minute, as was the time it took to get the EP here. The results speak for themselves!