Think of the current metal scene as a vast metropolis. Profound Lore  might be the artistic quarter, Nuclear Blast the bustling, successful yet respectable commercial hub, and Roadrunner Records the aging, somewhat dilapidated but culturally rich heritage district. Some miles away, we have Victory Records, which I may liken to the ghetto of this city, a place where metalheads dare not venture, in fear of being stabbed by a trend, or mugged by a br00tal breakdown. I would never dismiss the label entirely, but they’ve recently received flak (and rightly so) for hosting bands of questionable quality, most notably the infamous Design The Skyline. While The Bunny The Bear certainly look like another one of Victory’s trendy gimmicks, there is an experimental air to their music that sets them apart from the typical x-core act you may be expecting them to be. “The Stomach For It” is not an album to be taken seriously, nor is it brilliant in any respect, but there’s something to be said for a speck of grey in a sea of black.

The ‘gimmick’ of The Bunny The Bear revolves around their two masked singers; the former offering varied screams and growls, whilst the latter gives a high pitched clean vocal not dissimilar from Coheed & Cambria‘s Claudio Sanchez. Musically speaking, The Bunny The Bear fuse metalcore with dance and electronic pop music. In this sense, they might be compared to the superior iwrestledabearonce, albeit without the same spastic chaos. Although all styles mentioned rarely interest me, The Bunny The Bear patch it together in a way that sounds fun and even forward-thinking in parts. Some of the guitar work (particularly in “Lonely, Lonely, Lonely” and “I’m Scared Now”) is surprisingly technical and impressive, giving the music a touch of prog I would never have thought to hear on an album like this. Though the effeminate pitch and tone of The Bear’s voice won’t appeal to the more metal amongst us who make a living skinning crocodiles or hunting frost giants, many of his vocal melodies are undeniably catchy.

I find myself decidedly less enthusiastic about The Bunny‘s harsher vocals. Although it’s cool that he has quite a range (from quasi-black metal rasps to grunts and screams), most of it defaults on a rough, adolescent scream that fits the bill of what I would expect in the average tweencore band. Nothing about his performance is particularly good, although his death growls tend to be listenable. In short, The Bunny’s harsher vocal approach does not seem to fit the generally light and synth-heavy sound of the band, often to the point where I feel it gets in the way of what would otherwise be a pretty good synth-pop metal record. “The Stomach For It” ultimately feels like a lightly experimental take on a style that The Bunny The Bear sound largely well cut-out for. The catchy hooks are far and beyond the album’s greatest feat, and though it’s often taken for granted, the production is pretty good too. Unfortunately, the ‘experimental’ tag that first interested me in checking out this band has been overrated, and the charm wears off pretty quickly after a listen or two. The Bunny The Bear put just enough of a different spin on things to make them stand out from Victory’s usual nonsense, although I’m reluctant to call it anything past decent.

[Visit the band's website]

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