From the start, Ev0lution seemed like a dream come true for fans of EDM and metal, combining the best of both worlds with your favorite deathcore vocalists and metalcore singers, but Uprise proves otherwise. In 2016, Ev0lution dropped “Horror on Park Ave” featuring Dan Watson (Enterprise Earth) and Devin Barrus (In Motive). It was unique, but not necessarily good, although Barrus does make the song forgivable. Before I dive into the album, I want to make clear that I used to listen to a ton of EDM and I still do sometimes, which sort of qualifies me to say that this is not good EDM at all.
Right off the bat, “Fallout” features Dickie Allen (Infant Annihilator,) CJ McMahon (Thy Art is Murder) and Jack Simmons (Slaughter to Prevail). This only seems like a godly trio of deathcore vocalists. I personally think that Dickie’s vocals can improve any song, but I can’t say that about “Fallout.” The beats are weak, the drops are weak, the vocals are muffled, and it rarely shows potential. “The Greada Treaty” features Adam Warren of both Oceano and Surge. One, I had no clue that Adam Warren had pipes and could belt some of the most beautiful clean verses on this record, which almost saves the track. Unfortunately, the beats are lackluster and the good is outweighed by the bad.
Track three, “Uprise,” again features CJ and Devin, but what’s crazy is that this track is miles better than “Fallout” in every aspect. If the album had sounded more like this song, it could have made for some of the best EDM I’ve ever listened to. Unfortunately, it’s immediately followed by “Horror on Park Ave” with Dan and Devin, and some dude named Blast. It’s pretty wack, unless you dig the “Spooky Scary Skeletons” type of beat. “Unhallowed” has some amazing features from both Ben Duerr (Shadow of Intent) and Colton Bennett (Angelmaker), making this another somewhat stable track amid the jumble of weirdness that is Uprise. Ben’s vocals over the ambient beat are a surprisingly good match, and Colton’s riffs add a respectable aspect to the proceedings, but then “Take Me Away” is, simply put, just bad. For once, the album uses live drums courtesy of Josh from Emmure, and Andy Cizek (WVNDER) delivers some competent cleans, but it’s as forgettable as anything else on the record. “Conquer” starts cool, but then a rap verse from someone named Drew Gates ruins the song so completely that it almost doesn’t matter that Tyler Shelton (Traitors) is on the track, although his contribution is easily the the highlight of the song.
“My Nightmare” is far and away the best song on the record because it follows the methodology of a simple EDM track and feels like it belongs on the album. “Roar” is carried by Devin Barrus’s range. His talent shines through the track, and Andrew Patterson deserves mention, too. “The Algorithm” is another song Devin carries, and ultimately, he makes listening to this album bearable. “Treego” has probably the best integration of heavy vocals thanks to Casey Pearce of Angelmaker, who is a beast, and although I used to love Luke Griffin (Human Error), he feels misplaced on the title track.
This is easily some of the worst music I’ve heard this year, which is a shame since most of the features are technically great. Ev0lution is a mistake, and I feel as if it never should've happened. Uprise, without a doubt, is one of the worst albums to ever emerge from the deathcore scene.
- Dakota G.
Archival details
- Original URL
- https://metallifestyle.weebly.com/metal-lifestyle/review-ev0lution-uprise
- Recovery source
- live-weebly
- Recovery date
- 2026-07-22
- Stewardship polish
- 2026-07-22
- Preservation status
- restored
- Missing assets
- None recorded
Preserved by Bloodsoaked Media · The Archives