Coming at
They Want You Silent completely blind, the first thing the average grindcore fan is going to think upon listening to first track "Shall We Dance" will be something along the lines of "Hm, this dude's death growl is a lot higher-pitched than most." This is actually a good thing, since it means that
Bloodlined Calligraphy is much less likely than most in their chosen field to be mistaken for a band led by a bad-tempered Muppet. But check the liner notes and band photos: said dude is actually a woman named Ally French. Much like
Mike Patton's introduction into
Faith No More with their second album, replacing their far more limited original lead singer, French is a new addition to a band originally led by a guy named Matt Fleming, and her entry to the band adds a greater tonal range and different energy than the usual low-register grumble would provide. Unfortunately, French's vocals are pretty much the only interesting aspect of
They Want You Silent, which is otherwise completely standard-issue metalcore of interest only to the most devoted fans of the style. ~ Stewart Mason