Modern Ruin

The second full-length effort from the ex-Gallows frontman and his pit of Rattlesnakes, Modern Ruin retains all the bite of Carter and company's 2015 debut, Blossom, while incorporating some of the more melodic, modern rock tendencies of his previous project, Pure Love. Carter remains an imposing and compelling figure, as capable of crooning as he is spitting up plumes of ire, and Modern Ruin's best moments arrive via a synthesis of the two persuasions. Lead singles "Lullabye" and "Snakes Eyes," the former a brooding, melody rich alt-rocker that navigates the aural divide between Muse and Queens of the Stone Age, and the latter an emo-tinged, dark arena-punk lament, occur early in the proceedings, laying the groundwork for the remainder of the 12-track set, which largely follows suit. The one outlier is the stirring closer "Neon Rust," a slow-building dystopian call to arms written for Carter's daughter that laments "Everything is murder, there's no mystery" and "We don't belong in a wasteland." Despite its varying sonic proclivities, Modern Ruin is a punk album at heart, but that Carter ends this latest salvo with hope for a better, more empathy-driven future for his child shows that he's capable of more than just mosh pit-inducing invective. ~ James Christopher Monger