Band:	Cancer Bats
Album:	Hail Destroyer
Style:	Punk, Hardcore, Metalcore
Release date:	April 22, 2008
Guest review by:	Boxcar Willy

01. Hail Destroyer
02. Harem Of Scorpions [feat. Tim McIlrath]
03. Deathsmarch [feat. Wade MacNeil]
04. Regret
05. Bastard's Waltz
06. Sorceress
07. Lucifer's Rocking Chair
08. Let It Pour
09. Smiling Politely [feat. Ben Kowalewicz]
10. Pray For Darkness
11. PMA 'Til I'm DOA
12. Zed's Dead, Baby

2009 re-issue bonus tracks:
13. Engine Skull
14. Agenda Suicide [The Faint cover]
15. So Jealous [Tegan And Sara cover]
16. I Want A Lot Now [Murder City Devils cover]

People often have a strong dislike to the hardcore/metalcore genre - which, most of the time, is justified by oodles of crappy albums. However, Cancer Bats are one of the few exceptions from that mass pile of overproduced cow honky. The make good music, simple and sweet.

This album is great; the songs involve great riffs and strong vocals. The music is well written and put together well. Overall I have only a few few dislikes for this album, and they are not entirely Cancer Bats' fault.

Liam Cormier's voice is good; his screams are limited to mid- and high-range, which is good - because, frankly, it would make the album really bad if there were low-pitched vocals. The album also contains a few guest vocalists, which I feel are completely unnecessary, and is one of my only dislikes for this album. Tim from Rise Against sounds too similar to Liam for there to be any real contribution, Wade's (Alexisonfire) part doesn't last long enough for him to make a real impact and Ben (Billy Talent) just sucks; he really brings down the quality of the song "Smiling Politely". Most songs incorporate a sort of sing-a-long style chorus, which is great and is even better during a live performance.

The guitars have a nice shriek to them, adding to the rawness and the "underground" feeling that this band produces. They have a heavy punk influence, as do the rest of the instruments. There aren't very many solos in this album... which is okay, because the ones that are included are rather mediocre. The bass has a great groove throughout the album, so props go out to Jaye R. Schwarzer. The drums are the major highlight in this album, with them varying on every track. The drums add to the punk feel as well. They have a very simplistic style beat, which is definitely not a bad thing. I enjoy them in every track.

This album is good for a few reasons: one, being that the band is very different from anything I've ever heard; two, every song is different to some degree, with different riffs and drum beats. I would even recommend this to somebody who is strongly against the hardcore/metalcore genre. This is a very good album. My only dislikes are the guest vocalists, and that the album is a little too long, as I feel they could have clipped off one or two of the songs on the album. This is a good album boys and girls, so buy now!

Highlights: "Lucifer's Rocking Chair", "Deathsmarch", "Hail Destroyer"