Album Review: Out Of The Shadows (Escape the Fate)

The return of slimyboy Craig! Based on the album cover visuals, I expected the sound to resemble This War Is Ours, and right away I'm not disappointed. Nice fusion of slimy vocals and the power ballads they've done more of in recent work.

It's Just Me but with some very cool epic instrumentation. fantastic. Also very slimy and bombastic, wretched creature vibes. Possibly even cooler and more unhinged than the original.

We heard this one back in April, but in terms of reassessing...if you are familiar with I See Stars, that's about the vibe in terms of fusion of screaming and dubsteppy noises. Definitely does not sound like standard EtF, it's actually reminiscent of some of Craig's collabs with electronic folks outside of it, but it's good song. Works a lot better in album context than it did by itself in April. It's got some glitchy screaming / growling in it which is cool and something the last two albums were squarely lacking in. Its intro is a bit weird, but it's a solid song all around.

Kind of like Apologize, in terms of being fast, aggressive, and smug about being self-destructive, with a fun and catchy power-type chorus. I continue to love the distorted screaming and growling. Apparently both Craig and Ronnie are in favor of digging a hole and throwing Craig inside, although presumably this song's hole is less than 10 miles wide because leveling an entire city to bury someone is overkill.

The tempo change is very cool and goes with the lyrical themes. Overall, the composition is top tier and the guitar solo is yes. I don't really do that much research into the band members but apparently they got some new folks recently and they're doing a great job. This entire album feels like bonus tracks from This War Is Ours or the self-titled album from an alternate timeline, which is a fantastic vibe.

We love a good angsty breakup song. Like Harder Than You know or World Around Me but edgier. The autotune is noticeable throughout this album especially on mostly clean songs like this, but I think it works with context; it adds to the distortion vibe throughout. Doesn't quite align with this song, though.

Well, uh...it does not sound like an Escape the Fate song most of the time, but it still works? I still like it? I'm not sure how to describe it. Not quite sure what the backbeat on the main verses is trying to do. Please don't fall to the same trap that Ronald did in trying to integrate rap and electronic elements where they don't belong, Craig. You're better than that.

Has been out since February, and I've loved it ever since. It's great. Probably the single best song they've released since I Am Human. It's got fast aggression and Craig being just slimy enough for it to work. Fantastic. The solo harsh spoken word part in the breakdown is great. Don't get me wrong, I love The Drug In Me Is You, but this is the vibe that its hatred songs wish they had.

Lyrically speaking, a classic Escape the Fate "yes I am messed up please be aware of this" anthem, with the edgier electronic sections between its lyrical segments for vibes. Reminiscent of Something (as in, the song off This War Is Ours, not a general descriptor), Do You Love Me, and Beautifully Tragic. like I Am Human, but with enough edge to fit into context and sound like an EtF song. Deeply relatable as well.

I love superpowered evil sides and inner demons and this is a song about them. Fantastic and pretty damned emo which i adore. The changes in instrumentation work to represent the different sides. Also I'm not gonna say that the title's a reference to Falling In Reverse, but a song about inner evil that isn't whiny and the inner darkness being described as both irreversible and inescapable...hmm... The breakdown/final bridge is GREAT; the layering of standard EtF singing and screaming totally gives the vibe of him fighting the inner demon.

I like the lyrics and overall theme, it actually feels a little bit like an aspect of the Guillotine saga, but the trap backbeat does...not really work? It sort of worked on HYPNOTIZED because it was poppier in terms of lyrical themes, but this one really needs the epic instrumentation to illustrate its point, which it doesn't have. Basically the only song from this album that I don't totally love.

Slimyboy Craig meets creepyboy Spencer in a circus of self-destruction. Also reminiscent of It's Just Me in terms of lyrical themes, the circus backbeat, and being thoroughly unhinged (affectionate). ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED? Yes, I am totally entertained. The whole theme of "this is my circus of destroying myself, this is what the people want, be entertained" is fantastic, and the increasing creepiness in the back combined with the clean vocals really works in context. Behind the facade there is slime and not the fun kind.