FEEDING THE WOLVES is a Metalcore band from Innsbruck, Australia. "Antagonist" is the group's debut studio album, released independently on December 3, 2021.

My one big critique for this album (and honestly, it's the only bad thing I can say here) is that you can really hear the band wearing their influences on their sleeves. Everything from the big hooks to the mixture of screaming and clean vocals shows that this group has a clear admiration for bands like KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, AS I LAY DYING, and ALL THAT REMAINS. You could put this album on in the background of a Hot Topic and no one would know the difference between them and one of the bigger groups to come out of the early-to-mid-2000's. That being said, the music on this album is very good and really catchy, making this a strong debut.

Patrick Carey's vocals are powerful, showing a command of the various styles of singing necessary to pull off effective Metalcore ("Acoasma"). Dimitry Sima's riffs are groovy, intensely melodic, and very heavy, showing instances of thrash influences mixed into the generalized appreciation for AT THE GATES ("Ember"). Benjamin Höllwarth's bass is booming and hugely important to the harmonies that are going on here, especially during the intro of "Insomniac." And last but not least, Dominik Weiz's drumming is punky, thrashy, and groovy - a perfect mixture without being too flashy ("Void").

Other highlights from this track listing include "Breaking Point," a forceful introduction that shows hints of a MACHINE HEAD influence and has one of my favorite choruses on the whole album; "Gone With The Wind," which has my other favorite chorus on the record; and "Rotten From Disease," which shows Carey breaking out his most viscerally heavy vocals and has a really crazy breakdown at the end.

Overall, this is a fine debut for my tastes. As I said, the group is really wearing their influences on their sleeves, but they may well move past that on future releases. For fans of 2000's Metalcore, FEEDING THE WOLVES have handily delivered the exact thing you want.