Wage War – STIGMA

Label: Fiction Records
Released: 21st June 2024

‘STIGMA’ is impossible to listen to with any semblance of stillness. Wage War have forged track after track of headbanging, arm-swinging metalcore mayhem. Offering equal opportunities for chest-rumbling rage and animated introspection alike, Briton Bond (lead vocals) and Cody Quistad (clean vocals) give each other ample space to showcase their talents throughout the record, striking a neat balance between vocal styles. In doing so, the cleaner vocals shine brighter, and the screams hit harder.

Opening with a deceptively trance-like state, the aptly named ‘THE SHOW’S ABOUT THE START’ free falls into hair-raising breakdown after breakdown. Splashes of an industrial influence weave themselves throughout the song, bringing further grit from the get-go. Where ‘MAGNETIC’ is an anthemic earworm with a bouncy chorus made for the festival crowds, ‘NAIL5’ djents onto the scene with strings tuned all the way down to hell. Bond’s guttural, gravelly voice meets them at that impossible octave, albeit not lyrically fresh. But it’s sixth track ‘TOMBSTONE’ that’s the blisteringly bright star of the show; the screams are white hot, and the riffs are relentless. Beating its chest and bringing a seismic sound capable of cracking the ground in two, it’s an adrenaline-spiking, spitting tour de force.

‘STIGMA’ is a blood pumping breakdown-laden album, with plenty of chugging choruses to chant along to. The hooks are meaty enough to sink your teeth into, but be careful because this album bites back.