This is what metalcore should sound like. These guys start from a base of total hardcore and import a few things from metal (like the squealing guitar solo that opens "Bottomless," and the moody instrumental "IV," which is exactly the kind of under-two-minute track that has introduced a thousand thrash albums since the '80s), instead of watering down thrash or death metal with empty-headed hardcore bluster. In 22 minutes,
the Creatures bash through ten songs, every one a burner filled with gang shouts, hoarse lead vocals, riffs that'll make you want to claw your face off and climb the nearest wall with just your teeth, and jackhammer drumming. Oh, and flesh-ripping guitar solos. They're probably just as lyrically boneheaded as every other hardcore band ever, but it hardly matters when the riffs are this bone-crunching and the production is this excellent -- filled with low-end rumble and a clear, powerful mix that makes every drum hit sound like a punch in the temple. These guys don't have any new ideas, but hardcore is ultimately functional music, and
I, Lucifer is a pit-roiling machine fueled by raw adrenaline and instrumental skill. ~ Phil Freeman