My hometown has has a small alternative scene for a while but nothing much has really broken out of it. Last year, Orpington’s metallic hardcore mob Cove unleashed their first mini-album We Were Once Lost. Since then, they’ve been growing in stature and continue to make a name for themselves in the UK hardcore scene.
The mini-album is everything you’d expect from a modern hardcore band, shifting between straight up metalcore to melodic hardcore with a natural flow that just seems to fit, such as opener “No Place”. The vocals are fierce and throat shredding, showing real emotion against the chaos behind it. The technicality of the guitarists Pete Woolven and Ben Brazier are supported by solid production and a thick tone, with the bass rumbling along nicely and tight drumming keeping everything together.
I will have to admit that, as someone who has somewhat drifted away from the hardcore scene over the years, I do feel that things can start to stagnate a little as any hardcore album progresses, and this effort is no exception. As things slow down on “Sonder”, one can find themselves drifting out of focus after the barrage that came before it. In the overall picture, the track serves as a nice breather from the break-neck aggression of Cove’s core sound, but it kind of slips by before “Found At Last” pulls you kicking and screaming back into the action, finishing strongly with “An Honour”.
Overall, Cove don’t particularly offer anything new to a saturated hardcore scene, but what they do achieve in We Were Once Lost is a solid effort and their execution has enough conviction to make them stand out. It’s worth checking them out now while they’re still in ascendancy.
The mini-album is everything you’d expect from a modern hardcore band, shifting between straight up metalcore to melodic hardcore with a natural flow that just seems to fit, such as opener “No Place”. The vocals are fierce and throat shredding, showing real emotion against the chaos behind it. The technicality of the guitarists Pete Woolven and Ben Brazier are supported by solid production and a thick tone, with the bass rumbling along nicely and tight drumming keeping everything together.
Overall, Cove don’t particularly offer anything new to a saturated hardcore scene, but what they do achieve in We Were Once Lost is a solid effort and their execution has enough conviction to make them stand out. It’s worth checking them out now while they’re still in ascendancy.
Follow the band on Facebook and stream the entire album below.