Strongarm

Item: The Advent Of A Miracle
Author: D_Lister

The Advent Of A Miracle

(1997)

Reviewed by D_Lister

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Label Tooth & Nail RecordsDead Zine1997

hardcore metalcore punk

Power! Raw yet pure, brutal yet soothing. The Advent of a Miracle is the second effort by the Florida based Strongarm, and only goes to show that a truly awesome band can in fact get better, tighter, and more technical. To say this album is phenomenal would be quite the understatement. Chris Carbonell delivers us some of the finest hardcore vocals I've heard this year. Yet many songs have softly spoken words that almost haunt into your heart. You can feel his emotion right off this CD from the very first song "These Times That Try Men's Souls." This song takes off at a breakneck pace, and sets the mood for the entire album.

Musically the band is incredibly tight on this album. Chad Neptune performs some remarkable bass lines on this disc, and thanks to a superb production process they can be heard very easily. This really adds a nice element to the music that the hardcore scene has not explored as much as it should. Steven Kleisath does not drill to death the bass drums either, but still comes up with some very technical playing. You can hear him all over his drum set on this album. The guitarists, Nick Dominguez, and Josh Colbert, combine for some fine efforts as well. This is not your typical chunga chunga hardcore, this music keeps you interested.

Like most hardcore out there the lyrics are very straight forward and honest. There is no hiding who these guys serve. Take the following from "Council Of Perfection"

All sacrifice and all suffering is redemptive.
Formed in the palm of GOD's mighty hand.
Shaped, by the work of his will.
And alive from the breath of his loving heart.
Man's inspiration, is GOD's touch on the quickened nerves of the spirit.

These guys glorify His name and are not afraid to let it show, however the insert shows evidence that they are out there delivering their message to the unsaved. Inside the cover is a passage from the band that says:

"The philosophies of man have risen and fallen; tides of popular thought have come, have gone, and will go. Is it any wonder that we choose to stand on that which is eternal, that which has served as a beacon through 6,000 years of human history? Come let us reason together...am I still not your brother? The 'Scene' and all of its cliques, its politics, only divide. Disagree, if you must, but at least respect my right to dissent. And I shall defend, till death, your right to do the same."

If there is a downside at all to this album it is the length of the album. Nine songs in all totaling just under 30 minutes of music. After dropping $15.99 on this CD it does seem to end on you far too quickly. Yet there can be no fault at all found with the music contained within. This album is surely for all those who enjoy hardcore such as Zao, Focused, Focal Point, or Unashamed.

8/10

Other Staff Member Ratings
Fletch: 10/10
HadeSlayeR: 4/10
Scum: 5.5/10
dEaDsMilE: 6.5/10
Much: 5/10
Ceeb: 9/10