Hymns In Dissonance by Whitechapel | Album Review

The ninth album from the Tennessee deathcore sextet punishes listeners with their heaviest work to date.

Of all the subgenres of metal, deathcore stands out as among the most physically punishing. Guitar riffs are monstrous in speed and dissonance, drums utilize intense blast beats to maximize the noise, and vocalists reach into the depths of their souls to create the most inhuman noises put to tape. It’s disturbing to write, demanding to record, and horrifying to hear, in all of the best ways.

Knoxville, TN sextet Whitechapel are a firmly established fixture of this scene, putting out one punishing record after another in their nearly two decade career. Now on their ninth album Hymns In Dissonance, guitarist Alex Wade claims they went in with the goal of creating their “heaviest album to date.” 

I can affirm that they absolutely succeeded. Produced entirely by guitarist Zach Householder, Hymns In Dissonance is an amazingly unrelenting assault on the ears for 43 minutes, with some of the most towering guitar riffs and guttural screams I’ve heard in a very long time. They also indulge all of my favorite metal cliches: squealing guitar solos, super slow breakdowns, and plentiful references to Devil worship.

“Prisoner 666” opens the album like a horror movie, muffled guitar tones beckoning the listener to lean in, before they smash you over the head with a sledgehammer as the full band comes in. The drums are intensely tribal, the guitars sound a million feet tall, and vocalist Phil Bozeman absolutely shreds his vocal chords. I never thought I’d be so hyped for a band chanting “666” in the year 2025, but it makes my inner angsty teen so happy.

Flowing seamlessly from “Prisoner,” the title track hits us next, another onslaught of massive power chords and devastating blast beats. The increasingly slow breakdowns will have the crowd going wild at live shows. 

I also love just how violent, unhinged, and self-referential the lyrics are: rhyming “masticate” with “masturbate,” talking about devouring the eyes of God, a whole verse made of titles of their past songs. They even sing “Satan, the father, bathe us in sulfur” backwards, a reference to the history of fear mongering about hidden messages in metal music.

“A Visceral Retch” amps the disturbing factor of the lyrics to eleven, to the point that I don’t want to repeat them (if you know what the word “coprophagic” means, you’ve got the general idea). Again, the band serves relentless riffage, and Bozeman’s voice enters the most sickeningly dark places.

And Whitechapel does not let this high caliber drop once across Hymns In Dissonance. So consistent is the quality of this album that my only nitpick is that consistency.  For nearly the whole 43 minute runtime, they pummel the listener. If you aren’t the biggest fan of extremely loud deathcore, this album won’t give you any room to breathe.

This LP saves the best for last, too, concluding with the demonic “Nothing Is Coming For Any Of Us.” After showing us some of the most horrific images, Whitechapel ends with the thing that scares me most: existential nihilism. Nothing is real, no Gods are coming to save us, everything is bleak. I can’t deny Whitechapel is a band that instills fear, and they’re doing it better than ever before on Hymns In Dissonance. Let the chaos reign.

Production: 8/10

Lyrics: 8/10

Songwriting: 8/10

Overall: 8/10

Favorites: Prisoner 666, Hymns In Dissonance, Nothing Is Coming For Any Of Us

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Thank you for reading! What did you think of this album? Feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts and recommendations.