Die Young from Texas returns after a 4-year hiatus, during which principal band-member Daniel travelled the world for PETA and played in bands like Band Of Mercy. With a new line-up with some old and some new members, Die Young is back. They went into the studio in late 2013 for a split with Brazil’s Confronto and this new EP, ‘Chosen Path’ which is released in different formats (and slightly different track-listings) on Headfirst Records (USA), Ugly And Proud Records (Europe) and Vegan Records (South-America).

This EP starts off with ‘Enter’ which moves from an acoustic intro into a heavy metallic track. Die Young does not let up from that point on, it’s a constant barrage of heavy and fast metallic hardcore with Daniel’s typical rabid vocals. They clearly did not set out to re-invent their sound, as this EP fits right in with their older material. Their sound still mixes elements from Catharsis (especially Daniel’s vocals) to more metallic hardcore bands like All Out War and Terror. Lyrically Daniel’s lyrics are still socio-political but he also focuses a bit more here on challenging oneself and stepping out of the comfort zone and taking on the world, questioning not only everything else but also, and maybe especially, one’s own beliefs and convictions. Good stuff. My favorite track is ‘Return To The Earth’, but there’s not one bad track here.

Daniel has made it clear in interviews this is not a one-off reunion, so hopefully that means more music is to come. In the meantime I’ll keep listening to this EP and hope they’ll make it back to Europe again. This EP ranks right up there with their best material, and I’m looking forward to hearing more from them.

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