New On Broken Wings tracks have been surfacing on YouTube.com and various web pages as of late and I have to say it has put a smile on my face to see these kids back together making music. I have only heard two tracks thus far but I am convinced that the extended vacation has done them well. Upon hearing of their plans to record a new album, I was intrigued because the landscape of hardcore has changed so much since they time in which they were prevalent. Needless to say they have stepped up to the plate and knocked it out of the park. The new tracks are immediately life crushingly heavy and have way more of a metal feel to them. The singing (a la I Do My Crosswords In Pen) has been replaced with even more scratchy vocals, the breakdowns are a lot heavier than previous releases, which was thought to be impossible. Lastly the guttural vocals have gotten even deeper on the newer tracks, which aids in making their overall "newer" sound extremely intense. The production quality on these new tracks far surpass any of OB DUB offering, giving them a very clean and polished sound. All of these progressions are definitely a better look for them in 2012 and I am curious to see how the rest of the album tentatively titled "Summer Solstice" will sound.
Oh, and I am crossing my fingers for another John Blake hidden freestyle.