"This is an emergency; our house is on fire (fire, fire, fire, fire...)." With this being the opening line into the first song that you hear on this album "Crisis", you can tell that this album is going to be full of the existential crisis feeling that is hanging over society right now. The theme of the song is almost filled with just as much anxiety as the message of your house being on fire. Heavy guitar lines catch the ear; a heavy tone, eventually blowing up and fading off with an electronic edge. The music behind this mostly instrumental track leaves the audience in anticipation, as most of the year 2020 has done. Buckle up and listen to the sound of the music if you want a ride through the minds of the band IN HEARTS WAKE on their album "Kaliyuga".

"It's dying from the inside, it's a wildfire lullaby, it's the final kiss goodnight, It's a worldwide suicide." I'm not sure about you, but my personal interpretation of these lyrics from the second track are that of a dying world that is essentially killing itself. "Worldwide Suicide" is not a song for people who are faint of heart. This heavy song overlays a darkly interesting message. That of an essentially dying world. I feel it does leave a huge glimmer of hope in there somewhere, but for you to figure that out, why don't you go find the album and give it a listen and form your own glimmer of hope. If you can't, I got another recommendation for you...

"Force Of Life'' is the 10th song on this album, and if you listen carefully, you will hear a belief in hope that these artists hold. The band seems to be fairly conscious of the world around them and the album name ties into a Hindu belief. Essentially, "Kaliyuga" is the last of the 4 stages that Earth goes through in a certain cycle. I'll leave the rest of interpreting that up to you, as I don't want to push a Hindu belief on anyone. Regardless, it seems to have a quite interesting back story. For another interesting story on this album, let's go listen to the song "Timebomb".

This song reveals a story of hiding your pain and just how dangerous that act can be. About how your life will never change if you always remain locked behind your pain. It is easy to listen to, and the metal music is never too overpowering for the deep message embedded within these lyrics. The song is a nice follow up for the song before it, not throwing the listener directly back into the heavy feeling of dread from the first couple songs on the album. The themes and concepts also tie together, as if those songs were meant to sit next to each other in a meaningful way.

That song happens to be "Moving On", which is my favorite track on the album. It ties calmness and heaviness together. The feel of the dark and the light that both encompass life, blended together in this sort of yin yang concoction of music. It carries a message of self-love and personal growth. If you listen past the first impressions, which is how well this band performs! Listening past the vast glory of the music is something that will take a couple playthroughs of the album, but when you have an album this great, I wouldn't say that's a bad thing.

If you're looking for something to lighten your spirits about the state of the world today, then you have stumbled upon an album that may give you the spark that you need to see through the darkness. Packed with great guitar, amazing lyrics, and solid overall talent, this is one album in 2020 that you don't want to miss!