Glass Casket open for viewing
Zac Morris, entertainment editor

"We are gathered here today…” to here some ear bleeding hardcore music. The source is from the band Glass Casket.
 

Glass Casket hails from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where they formed in 2001.Thier debut album “We are gathered here today” was recorded in 2003 in memory of lead singer Adam Cody’s sister, Erin McClain Cody.
 

This 40-minute barrage of metalcore begins with “Pencil Lead Syringe.” The first impression I got from this song was horrible. I could not understand anything, and the music was like a collage of instruments played as loud as possible and far from in unison. But as the song progressed, I began to appreciate and eventually feel the music. I proceeded to listen again and was amazed at the collaboration. In reality, there are so many transitions in the song that it sounds off beat when it really isn’t, and Cody’s voice goes from an aggressive speaking, to a (scr) emo type of singing, and then to a dark, death-metal growl.

Through out the song, Cody goes from screaming out “I’m sorry you’re dead. Bite the curb. Snap” to speaking in a clear yet disturbed voice, “You should have loved me.” This leads me to the assumption that “Pencil Lead Syringe” is about a love that betrayed him.
 

The onslaught continues, and you come upon the fourth song, “Fearfully and Wonderfully Made.” Upon my first time hearing this song, I thought of Six Feet Under, because most of the lyrics are growled. This is very dark, yet it has meaning and I could definitely relate.
 

“Nothing else can make me still, so I’m calling on you now to lend me the strength.” The feeling being expressed by Cody is one of despair, though there is hope through help. In the end though, evil prevails and the song ends with the lines, “Make the oncoming traffic be the end of me. Don’t let me wake up again.” Throughout the song, the main sound that caught my attention was Blake Richardson’s drumming. Every double bass kick and cymbal crash is dead on, and the steady rhythm left my neck sore all day.
 

With “In Between the Sheets,” the title sounds like it could be a love song. Well, it’s not. The song is about a girl he kills and is lying under a white canvas sheet. This song starts out with a mysterious guitar that I can only describe as some old-school British guitarist on mind-altering substances. But then the song goes heavy, and I thought to my self, this band has no diversity. But I was wrong once again.

Two minutes and 40 seconds into the song, guitarists Blake Tuten and Dustie Waring start a mix of solos that were so out of place on this CD that it was utterly beautiful. The music was so calming, and Cody’s voice complimented the feeling perfectly. This would also give the impression that this is a love song, but the lyrics that give the true meaning are, “Take away the human heart and stab it with something not so sharp” and “She’s got a brand new white canvas on her face, for me to splatter with paint. She’s got nothing more than what was left running down her throat. The best of us was left between the sheets.”
 

The last song on the CD is named “A Gray A.M. You Will Never Get to See.”
 

This track is about Erin, Cody’s sister who has passed away. The music is very emotional, yet dark and hard, much like the rest of the album. But the lyrics are very touching, “But Erin couldn’t have lived out her dreams on Earth, so now I must make it a point. So now it’s my job to live them out for her and let the world know what a wonderful person it will never get to meet.” The song then ends, and you are left with a feeling of sorrow for a grieving brother.
 

This album was much more aggressive than I usually prefer, but this young band made a good impression on my musical interests. After reviewing “We Are Gathered Here Today…” I would encourage any true head banger to add this to their collection.