Released the day I'm writing this, Omnifear has released their brand-new EP "Kingdom" independently, but don't judge them yet - they've amassed one hell of a crew of featured artists to help them out. Just by looking at "Kingdom," I know I'm in store for some quality deathcore, and my hopes are hoisted even further with the gaggle of mega-talented acts to back them up. Omnifear hasn't released that much music since their formation, so the West Yorkshire-based trio better bring it!

"Adrift" acts as the brief opening sequence, and the only track to not feature any outside artists. I mean, why would you need any of them for a song such as this? It's almost two minutes of orchestration and some choral vocals, so I'm expecting that Omnifear goes down the symphonic deathcore alley. My favorite kind! "Tide" is the first meaty composition of the EP, featuring STATiC on synths to create some interesting soundscapes. Moving on to assessing how well the band plays, many modern deathcore staples are delivered solidly, most importantly the demanding drums and the vocal gymnastics. The drumming is by session drummer Robin Stone, and while it's mixed incredibly loud, I feel like it works in the context of the genre. The riffs still have room to be heard, and the vocalist's singing is constantly switching pitches. A scarily calm segment appears about 3/4ths of the way through, but it slams right into a cathartic, tremolo-picking, drum-slamming frenzy. I had to wait a second to go onto the next track because my brain still had to process everything that went on. I didn't hear much of what STATiC was doing sadly... Maybe the mixing got to them.

"Phantom Tranquility" was released as a single before the EP, and features Anabelle Iratni for some session singing and Richard Shaw on some session guitar. With overlapping guitars, I feel the deathcore come to life, and the melody sweep me away. The chorus is especially melodic. Anabelle debuts with some gothic-style vocalizations when the metal dies down, but she stays when the instruments pick back up. I really appreciate the clean singing in contrast to the hectic playing, and I would've wanted her to have a bigger role in the track. I may have to check out her work after this. I'm not sure if this was the best song to be released as a single, but now that the EP is out, that doesn't matter.

"Ashen Halo" is the song with the most prolific feature - the current guitarist of black metal legends Mayhem, Charles Hedger. How they roped him in on this project is beyond me, but his inclusion is great. The track is way speedier, and even a little thrashy at times. The enigmatic time signatures and riffs are such a pleasure to listen to. The breakdown admittedly standardizes the song as it finishes. The featured artist helps greatly with the track, and it's clear Omnifear benefits well from such support.

"Kingdom" is the epic of the tracklist, reaching almost nine minutes. It also features the vocalist from one of my all-time favorite bands! Kyle Schaefer of Fallujah. Longer deathcore tracks are fun, as you don't know how the space will be filled. Just as I expected, some electronic sounds rise from the ashes of the intro sequence, but the ballistic missiles that are the drums continue. Two stellar vocalists clash throughout this song, and I enjoyed every second. I'm glad this song was as long as it was - more time with the polished sound from Omnifear. It did end a bit abruptly though, and I think it would've benefit from a slow fade-out

From an EP with only five tracks, "Kingdom" is one hell of a package. Every song is stuffed with material that instantly disproves the anti-core rhetoric many metalheads still align with. Deathcore, when done right, is great. This was done right, so it's great. Easy as that.