Happy anniversary KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's Disarm the Descent!

After a decade(!!) of being away from Killswitch Engage, this album marked the return of original vocalist Jesse Leach. At last, finally, all the questions and the what-ifs and the "I wonder" issues were answered. There it was, all finished and complete: Killswitch Engage with Jesse on vocals again. It was no longer necessary to wonder.

Killswitch Engage

Disarm the Descent

Roadrunner Records

April 2, 2013

Mike D'Antonio - Bass; Adam Dutkiewicz - Guitars, Vocals (backing); Joel Stroetzel - Guitars, Vocals (backing); Jesse Leach - Vocals (lead); Justin Foley - Drums.

1. The Hell in Me, 2. Beyond the Flames, 3. New Awakening, 4. In Due Time, 5. A Tribute to the Fallen, 6. The Turning Point, 7. All We Have 03:20, 8. You Don't Bleed for Me, 9. The Call, 10. No End in Sight, 11. Always, 12. Time Will Not Remain. Total time 40:40.

A thoughtful, discerning and knowledgeable reviewer by name of Petrus Steele over at The Metal Archives wrote (in 2019) some observations on this album. Petrus Steele, says, in part: "Jesse sound [sic] healthier in his screams; not too forceful and balanced enough. He always sounded great in his own right when it comes to his clean vocals, and Disarm the Descent proved so. The Hell in Me showcases these improvements very well. He sings very well in Beyond the Flame; both in clean vocals and screams, where he tones them a bit down. Since this is a more melodic track, he contributes very beautifully during the choruses. Most of his screaming in New Awakening are very powerful and understandable, provided by the thoughtful lyrics. You can say the same for You Don't Bleed for Me (not to mention his inspirational-ish vocals during the atmospheric bridge). Probably the band's most famous song to their modern/Jesse respect, In Due Time hints how Jesse reveals some different layers to his clean vocals, while helps with some death growl. Sounding very motivational while aggressive during A Tribute to the Fallen's choruses and outro really defined this song more than I remembered. Underrated and powerful. Turning Point (showing a little experiment by switching from screaming in the first chorus to more prominent clean vocals during the second/outro), All We Have, The Call (which is my favorite song on the album and the best on all aspects), No End in Sight, Blood Stains are other tracks which capture all of Jesse's vocal ranges, and very beautifully executed; it's almost like he's an instrument of his own with his ranges (if that's a proper analogy...?). Always, which is all-around an atmospheric track and one of the band's greatest. For the most part, Jesse sings clean while adding some screaming to compliment the song's meaning."

Killswitch Engage - In Due Time [OFFICIAL VIDEO]