Going full circle with Chastity

At first glance, Chastity could be seen as another angsty emo band, riddled in their teenage woes of self-worth and rebellion, but there is a lot more than meets the eye in this fusion of different genres that calls itself Death Lust – a harsh title for an album that is uncomfortably morbid at times, yet innovative and a breath of fresh air in a year where emo has turned towards a more silly and lackadaisical approach from popular bands in the genre.

The Whitby, Ontario group is the brainchild of Brandon Williams and with a few EP’s under their belt, they have moved onto their inaugural full length. Death Lust channels the gritty attitude of grunge, pop punk and post-hardcore with some shoegaze, noise influences in the instrumentals. It creates a blend of fusion similar to bands like Nothing, but what differentiates them is their brutal lyrics as mentioned before.

Songs like “Choke” and “Heaven Hell Anywhere Else” both showcase self-loathing. “Choke” has a faster-paced punk sound but in the distorted vocals of Williams you can sense the noise rock influence. Williams screams lyrics that build into a hardcore climax with heart-wrenching lines like, “I’m the stain that won’t come out / The hate that stays in your mouth / The day that Dad walked out, the year mom stayed and drown.”

“Heaven Hell Anywhere Else” takes it slow at first, with sort of dream pop vibes. The slower verses build up to a mesmerizing chorus with echoed vocals that touch on the subject of suicide. Williams sings, “What would it feel like to fall? From the school sixty feet tall / What would it feel like to crawl from heaven hell, anywhere else.”

Although there are songs with negative contemplation or vengeful regurgitation, Death Lust has some positive messages. “Chains,” as sludge-like and noisey it is, urges you to break the chains of hate. The songs post-hardcore screams are horrifying but after the depressing lyrics of past, they are welcomed as therapeutic. “Innocence” follows up “Chains” by stating Williams hope, bringing Death Lust full circle in its message, as most emo albums should.

Death Lust is as good of a debut as you can ask for. It creates a familiar sound while mixing many different genres to create a unique message. The album never withers and no two songs are going to sound the same. The specialty that Chastity is showing on this record though is the songwriting of Brandon Williams. Without him, this project is good, not great. With his lyrics, fans of post-hardcore and even shoegaze are going to fall in love with Death Lust.