On the other side of the world unbeknownst to many, Australia lay. With bands of all sorts of calibre performing all over the country, a double edged sword. Such a beautiful country doesn’t come without its share of limitations. One being distance, Byron Bay born Parkway Drive began as a couple of dudes who just loved jamming and living life to its fullest. What they have since created has transcended much of what people would deem metal.
Becoming essentially one of the biggest bands in the Metalcore game, what always attracted me to Parkway Drive was simply their good loving ethos. Contagiously positive, the band’s outlook on life is one that truly should be noted. Releasing both Killing With A Smile and Horizons the band had garnered sufficient notoriety in the scene, not forgetting the fact that Killswitch guitarist and Metalcore flag bearer Adam D produced both albums it would be a safe bet that the band were very much in their prime. What came next was the era of Deep Blue.
Personally it has been one of my least favourite albums. In no way, shape or form because of the writing but merely the production. Picking up a copy upon its release in 2010 it sounded muddy and under produced, yet just yesterday I decided to take it for a spin again after all these years and it would seem that I was being a little too judgemental. Songs like the bouncing “Sleepwalker” have become essential in the bands live set up or the destruction that is “Deliver Me” are both some of the bands best material to date.
By no means is the album a complete front to back Masrerpiece the likes of classic Metal artists but it is fantastic evidence of the new generation of metal in this current day and age. Leaders of the Impericon charge, Parkway Drive are one of the most infectious bands of the modern day and are single handedly responsible for helpimg some of Australia biggest imports simply due to the fact they got picked up! Showing that Australia breeds some brilliant bands. The likes of Thy Art Is Murder, The Amity Affliction and a plethora of others and therein lies the rub. Listening to Winston McCall‘s anthemic lyrics in “Home Is For The Heartless“, coupled with the uplifting melodies, transports the listener to positivity and a true sense of unity so often stated in the metal community when in actual fact everyone is simply trying to one up each other.
Sure it might not be an album that will be archetypal in the way that Meshuggah has been to Progressive Metal or the way that Deftones‘ White Pony or Slayer’s Reign In Blood was to Thrash. This is an album that embodies all the positivity those five Australians exude and that’s all it need be, the band didn’t set out to make a masterpiece that would rewrite the formula. They were just guys playing music and if you’ve seen their truly incredible live performances then you will no doubt agree that Deep Blue is most definitely where the heart is.
