Yes, I will lay it bare and admit once again that I am one of those Metalheads who cringe at genres with the word "core" in them, unless it's hardcore, which in any case, is not Metal.

When I think of Metalcore or Deathcore (usually under pain of torture), my mind conjures up images of skinny boys with rebonded hair in Converses and graphic tees, doing butt workouts in the form of squats when trying to coordinate headbanging to cheesy breakdowns. But then again, that's judging based on genre, something I view as a severe affront against music.

When I was assigned to review STRAIGHT ON TARGET, an Italian Deathcore band's new full-length "Pharmakos", at first I was like, "Damn, one of those "core" bands again," but then another side of me was excited at seeing what these "core" bands could do differently to prove many Metalheads wrong, and it has happened before. I reviewed another "core" band once, specifically Metalcore: ACARO with their album "The Disease of Fear", and they were great. I gave them an 8/10. Therefore, open-mindedness was in line here.

The first track off STRAIGHT ON TARGET's "Pharmakos" began and immediately I was jaded by the fact that I had to endure yet another "atmospheric intro". So far, such intros have worked well for Black Metal and experimental releases, because it expands on and improves the general feel of what the genre is trying to convey. However for me, I just don't understand the need for an entire track to be dedicated to an "atmospheric intro" for other bands outside the two above-mentioned genres. "Theta" did absolutely nothing in terms of atmosphere, it was just white noise with a soaring tune that lasted around a minute and then was cut off abruptly.

And then the catch was revealed to me: track two "Ostrakon" was supposed to pick up where track one left off. Needless to say, I thought it was smart. The aforementioned white noise continued on as the base for the song, and while the track did seem empty and almost like too little music spread over too much white noise, I did end up getting a feel of what "atmosphere" the band was trying to convey.

By the time "Ostrakon" ended, I was thinking that for a Deathcore band, STRAIGHT ON TARGET seemed to be pretty experimental. However, by the time "Demonized" began, I had to pull back on that statement just a bit. I could not for the life of me distinguish between track 2 and 3. Perhaps if I listened to them over and over again and memorized each vibrato and drum pattern I could technically list the differences, but on first listen, it just felt like the band was playing the second song all over again. Or perhaps, this band is all about continuation and one song is supposed to lead to another. That would be the best case scenario.

It was around the fourth or fifth track where I realized how difficult it would be for me to shower any praises on anything Metalcore or Deathcore. To do so, the band would have to impress me beyond all expectations. Therefore, for the sake of a balanced and fair review, I'll say this much: STRAIGHT ON TARGET does Deathcore very well. Every trait that is a prerequisite of Deathcore is present on the album, from breakdowns to chugging rhythm guitar to deep growling vocals, and it is all structured in true blue Deathcore fashion. For the sake of conciseness, this is a Deathcore album, and I'm not just stating the obvious, I'm proving the point that nothing else should be expected from the album in terms of freshness or a new way of doing things or superb technique or enjoyable musicality... it's just what it is. People listen to Deathcore because they like it. Those who don't listen to it don't like it. As a conclusion, this album deserves the relatively high rating it's about to get because the boys of STRAIGHT ON TARGET know who they are, and they presented themselves in the most accurate, on-point manner ever - as a heavy, Deathcore band producing heavy, Deathcore music that is sure to attract listeners who like such heavy, Deathcore stuff.