THE DESPERADO: An extremely talented metalcore band.

 

As I have previously stated on this blog, sometimes the end of something (usually something good) leads to the beginning of something great. This can be true whether in the gaming industry, the movie and television industry or the music industry amongst other things. Today's blog post is focusing on music and a band that arose from 2 members leaving one metal band to form another. So, let's take a look at THE DESPERADO. 

To give a little background info on how the band came to be, I'll give a brief and informative biography. After leaving the metal band DEVILOOF, guitarist Seiya took to Twitter in April 2019 to announce that he was searching for a vocalist to join a new metalcore project that also involved ex-DEVILOOF drummer Hiroto. The duo allegedly left DEVILOOF due to musical differences which is unfortunate as they made some great music as apart of the band. Seiya's requirements for the vocalist were being able to sing and scream whilst also being interested in visual kei. After attracting a lot of interest, the vocalist was announced several months later. The project was officially announced in December 2019 with the band's name, THE DESPERADO, being introduced alongside vocalist Nero. Prior to his involvement in the group, Nero was known for his YouTube channel, where he posted vocal covers of DIR EN GREY songs. 

With the line-up complete, the trio swiftly got to work, wasting no time in releasing their first single. Gerbera was released on the 29th of December and provided a taste of what was to come. With some excellent heavy riffs, a tremendous breakdown and a sweet fast tempo helped by the precise drumming, Gerbera was an excellent introduction to the band's sound. Nero's vocals are sublime with his mixture of guttural low pitched screams complimenting his beautiful cleans and on top of that he mixed in some awesome highs. There's also a solid guitar solo and the lyrics are quite nice, hitting the sweet spot of dark and yet compelling. 

After covering some DEVILOOF songs on their YouTube channel and doing some Instagram live streams, the band released their second single, Another Universe on July 12, 2020. Another Universe is one of my personal favourite songs from their discography as it really blends in the orchestral sound with the crunching guitar riffs and Nero's impressive vocal range is on full display. His cleans are particularly pleasant to listen to and the chorus is spectacular in general as Nero's cleans are accompanied by the tempo slowing down in a heavenly symphony. It's rather unfortunate that Hiroto announced that he had left the band a few months after Another Universe had been released, I felt like he had more to offer the band.  

After Hiroto's departure, Nero and Seiya continued activities as a duo. They released a third single, Trigger, on the 29th of November 2020. Trigger features a nice, chunky and brutal guitar riff accompanied by some excellent double foot-pedalling drumming. I love Nero's screams and growls that lead into the chorus in which he emotes with clean vocals, the back and forth between singing and screaming is lovely. There's a neat guitar solo which is a little short, but sweet and a truly wonderful breakdown. 

The following year the band released their heaviest single yet. Black Chapter was released on the 1st of August, 2021 and it hit hard and heavy. Brutal guitar riffs, a devastating breakdown and a magnificent guitar solo really elevate the track and give it a really great edge. It even has some Djent-like moments. Nero's screams are truly black/death metal and it's really impressive. There's no clean vocals in Black Chapter, only screams, spoken word and whispers. Personally, I prefer having some cleans when possible, but the song is impressive regardless. 

They followed Black Chapter by releasing Innocent World. Although, there was quite the gap (A whole 10 months!) between the two releases with Innocent World being released on the 26th of June 2022. Innocent World is another of my personal favourite THE DESPERADO songs as it combines elements of Black Chapter's heavy, black metal with much more melodious metalcore. What I love about Innocent World is Nero's cleans during the sublime chorus in which the song enters a melodious, slower tempo that really compliments Nero's voice. I love how the chorus is sang in Japanese whilst the verses are screamed in English. I'm a sucker for Japanese cleans after all.  

Swiftly following Innocent World, the next single, Rotten Rose was released just one month later, on the 31st of July, 2022. Rotten Rose is yet another brutal song that features crunching guitar riffs, fast tempo drumming and killer screams. There's also some nice keyboard/piano instrumentation that adds to the dark atmosphere.  

January 29, 2023 saw the band release their first EP, The Cry Against with the title track also being released as a single. The EP featured a few of their previously released tracks, Another Universe, Black Chapter and Innocent World whilst also featuring 3 new songs, Prologue, The Cry Against and Unfair Advantage. 

Prologue is what you might expect. It's quite a short track with it only being 1 minute and a half long, but it's a beautiful prologue to the EP. It features some rather gorgeous instrumentation with some nice keyboard/piano work that leads seamlessly into The Cry Against. 

The Cry Against is yet another one of my favourite THE DESPERADO tracks. It features a much more metalcore sound than that of Black Chapter and Rotten Rose. There's a lot more clean vocals and a majestic orchestral backing track that elevates the song. Nero's vocal range does come into play as he employs the use of his guttural growls and screams in contrast to his fantastic cleans. The chorus is magical with the tempo slowing down and I love the moment where everything stops except for Nero and the orchestral backing him. There's a neat guitar solo and I love the fact that the song ends with a scream. 

Unfair Advantage has a rather catchy guitar riff as Nero gutturally growls over it before the song slows down a little with Nero speaking over what sounds like clapping. The screaming comes back to lead into the clean, catchy chorus. 

Alongside the release of the EP, the band also announced 2 new members that were joining the band. Bassist Akuru and drummer Daisuke joined the band in December 2023, making THE DESPERADO a four member group for the first time.

Overall, THE DESPERADO are a technically sound and gifted metal band that offer a wonderful sound. Nero is a talented vocalist with a wide range and the instrumentation done by his fellow band members help to emphasise and compliment his talent. Seiya's compositions are delightful and really shine in songs such as Another Universe, The Cry Against, Innocent World and Unfair Advantage. I'd recommend them to those who like their music loud and heavy!