Review: God Program, "Fragments of Illusion"

God Program - Fragments of Illusion
Listen and buy on their bandcamp

    With Fragments of Illusion, God Program are proving to be one of the finest bands in the Northeast right now.
    You know, with this whole metalcore revival going on right now, Connecticut hasn’t been getting the attention that it deserves. I’m not just saying that because I and three of the five writers for this blog are from Connecticut, either. Bands like Cast in Blood, Atonement, and bleed, to name just a few, have all put out quality releases that have kept the mosh going in Connecticut and yet not nearly with the recognition of places like Long Island or Philadelphia. God Program is no different from these other bands.
    Since the metalcore revival is, well, a revival, God Program, like many of the other bands at the forefront of the movement, take heavy inspiration from late 90’s and 00’s metalcore, specifically bands like Poison the Well and From Autumn to Ashes, and it shows from the onset. Dissonant, yet melodic chord progressions and riffs are the backbone of this record, something that is evident in songs like “Dostoevsky vs The Long Island Sound,” which opens with strummed-then-chugged riff that goes into a riff that sounds right at home on The Opposite of December; there’s a good amount of “core” too, with said riff evolving into a two-step.
    God Program aren’t just Poison the Well and breakdowns, either. The strongest songs on Fragments of Illusions are, without a doubt, the final two songs, “Scorpio Rising” and “Empty Words, Empty Hands.” The former is an acoustic track, with strummed chords as a foundation for some frankly beautiful singing. This leads into the latter, which is an exercise in early 00’s metalcore done right: vicious vocals, a soaring hook, and even the metalcore riff (you know exactly which one I’m referring to) to open the song. It’s equal parts mosh and emotion, which is a quality that many bands have tried to achieve but failed.
    While the riffs and song structures are done well, the high-point of the EP - and of the band as a whole - are the vocals. The screams here are, as said before, absolutely vicious. Throughout the entire release it feels as if the vocalist is literally shredding her larynx, which only adds to the somber, angry lyrics. The clean vocals are also done well, adding to the melody of the songs without coming off overdone or as a crutch. Throw in some ghastly backing vocals, especially on “Empty Words, Empty Hands”, and this is the whole package for anyone looking for high-quality metalcore. I should note that the vocals are a tiny bit low in the mix, but since they stand out so much, it doesn’t hurt the record very much at all.
    In all, God Program are metalcore in 2018. If you enjoy anything off of the 2003 Ferret Records roster, you should absolutely check this out.
    ​FFO: Poison the Well, From Autumn to Ashes, open hand moshing.