I first took interest in As I Lay Dying during the spring of 2009 as they followed an abbreviated set by Children of Bodom on the NYC stop of the No Fear Energy Drink Tour. I was upset that I did not get to see a full set from my Finnish metal heroes (Alexi was suffering from a broken shoulder) but As I Lay Dying who I was not familiar with came out and instantly captured my attention with their energy making me lose my case of the blues over Bodom. I even feel Dying were better that night than headliners Lamb of God. So here we are a year later and for the first time I have an album from these San Diego metallers in my hands.

This band is definitely cut from the metalcore cloth, but there is a reason why they are so popular, and that is because aside from being brutal they incorporate melody to their brand of metal. Anyone can just be brutal and that’s why there are thousands of bands who, to me, all sound the same, but these guys offer something different.

‘Without Conclusion’ is a roller coaster ride from the very start and a song that I can imagine lots of intense moshing and crowd surfing going on to. ‘Parallels’, while heavy and intense, has a chorus so clean and catchy that it wouldn’t be out on a limb to hear it played between Stone Sour and Nickelback on modern hard rock radio. The opening guitars on ‘Anger and Apathy’ remind me of Iron Maiden’s ‘Aces High’ opening in a weird metalcore type of way if you listen hard enough. ‘Upside Down Kingdom’ is perhaps the highlight of the album and has some excellent lyrics that discuss how many of today’s problems would not exist if we did the opposite of what the modern world tells us… great stuff!

Overall what we have here is a very solid millennium metal album from one of today’s spotlight bands. Their style is enjoyable but the only reason why I didn't give em an 8 is because I feel others like Shadows Fall, Five Finger Death Punch and Trivium do this a bit better. Having listened to some of Dying’s earlier stuff prior to hearing this album, I took note they have come a long way and really started growing with 2005’s "Shadows Are Security" and continued on with 2007’s "An Ocean Between Us". "The Powerless Rise" is perhaps as good as it is going to get for these guys though I would love to be wrong with their next platter possibly putting themselves in the same league with the above mentioned bands.

I will say, however, that when the metalcore plague takes place and thousands of bands become terminated, As I Lay Dying will rise above the massacre and very much be a part of Heavy Metal’s future.