When it came to marrying balls-to-the-wall metalcore aggression with visual kei melodies, Signal could do it like no other! Their mini album is a true metallic delight with a fiery spirit that begs to be played over and over again.
When I first heard Signal on their debut single they already presented a surprisingly well-formed sound right out the gate. From what I recall that period of time (late 2000s, early 2010s) was when the whole metalcore boom sort of reached the VK scene. That meant everyone and their little bro was trying to come up with their best watered-down-enough version of an already generic heavy-fast riff like there was no tomorrow, so naturally one was inclined to proceed with caution when checking out new bands, but luckily enough Signal managed to put substance into their craft.
I feel like they were one of the few bands who managed to 'stay real' so to speak when playing this type of metalcore-influenced music, i.e. their tracks always flowed very well and didn't sound like they were just checking off boxes in a gimmicky way. Maybe that's because they were one of the earlier groups to adopt this style so they went into it with genuine respect and conviction... who knows.
One thing's for sure though, just like their first few singles, their first and only mini album "CHAIN" contains a careful balance of hard-hitting metallic riffs, harsh vokills and a distinctly visual kei sense of melody and song arrangement. Almost every track on here has the characteristics of an instant crowd favorite to mosh or headbang to. Their razor-sharp riffs and relentless rhythms go into almost thrash metal territory on more than one occasion, but they also like to change up the pace with tastefully placed grooves and gentler, more melodic passages.
Vocalist Yuri goes all-out with amazing growls, squeals and screeches, but he can also hold his own in the singing department without fail, greatly enhancing these tunes. As already mentioned, the guitarists and the rhythm section perform their hearts out as well, which makes it all the more sad that none of the members went on to do anything of value (or of much interest) later... but what's important is that here in Signal they put together something special, I guess.
Ultimately, the record has a very uniform sound but not to its detriment. On the contrary, I feel like every song is on the same extremely high level of quality. It's hard to put this into words, but when you hear the vocalist sing or growl and the instruments doing their thing, it just sounds like there's a passion behind it that elevates the whole experience. You could say Signal's spirit burned brightly and their art remains as proof of that.
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