If you mix Nu Metal with Alternative Metal, a little Industrial Metal and put a lady behind the microphone the result could be STITCHED UP HEART. Originating from Los Angeles, California, USA they have been around since 2010. The matron of the band is singer Alecia 'Mixi' Demner, who also is the only original member left. The lineup as we see today has been in place since 2014, so is quite stable, if you ask me (and I know you won’t 😉). The releases they have shed so far are a self-titled EP in 2010, their debut album “Never Alone” in 2016 and their sophomore album “Darkness” in 2020. Now they are back with “To The Wolves”, and it is my first encounter with them.

Musically STITCHED UP HEART are doing exactly what I expected. Just think of LINKIN PARK mixed with a little SLIPKNOT and some parts of NINE INCH NAILS. That is a mix which is a recipe for success, when done correctly. That only means that if STITCHED UP HEART can produce outstanding songs that will blow you away, they are on a highway to greatness. Well, sorry to blow your bubble, as far as I am concerned, that is not happening. Even though they have been signed by the mighty CENTURY MEDIA, it’s not plain sailing to large figures.

I am a very adventurous guy when it comes to what I like within the metal community, but first and foremost I love good quality songs that make sense, that will be played over and over again in my head and that will have a lasting effect on me in the long run. That, in my ears and eyes, is where I feel that STITCHED UP HEART comes up short. Opening title song “To The Wolves” does do all that, as does “Taste For Blood”, but the rest of the material on “To The Wolves” is lagging behind on being awesome. They are just plain okay.

Maybe there is a younger generation that is calling me all kind of names right now, as they might be completely smitten by the music on “To The Wolves” especially and STITCHED UP HEART in general. I certainly am not. I can hear that the talent is there, I just feel that the songs sound too familiar, as if they’ve been done before. Except for the two examples I mentioned, as those do offer me new insights, make my heart flutter, make my brain happy, make my ears tingle. I need more of those.