Onward We March

The release of a debut effort is normally a momentous event for any band. That's not the case for Dallas' Onward We March, though. Just two weeks after pressing up The Golden Vine, the metal band announced that lead singer Logan Acton had decided to leave the band due to the ever-pesky "creative differences" that have crumbled greater acts before it.

So it's a bit of an awkward situation, as Onward We March attempts to replace Acton, while still trying to push their debut EP. What makes matters even worse is The Golden Vine is a pretty damn good slab of post-punkish metal. Mixing in elements of Fugazi and The Butthole Surfers into its screamo roar, Onward We March have positioned themselves as one of the leading new metal bands in the area.

Supposedly, the seven songs on The Golden Vine make up some kind of conceptual narrative, but such a fancy notion doesn't detract from the power of songs such as "Of Pestilence" and "The Human Aberration." Dual guitarists Tito Lopez and Mike Parra lay down a blitzkrieg of structured noise in order for Acton to demonstrate his vocal acumen. The way the singer switches between the almost unintelligible, guttural rant and the more conventional metallic shriek is pretty damn impressive. Too bad he's no longer in the band.

Assuming Onward We March can replace Acton with someone equally adept, fans of metal should certainly be looking forward to a future full-length release.