Will Haven - El Diablo

Will Haven
El Diablo
Crisis/Revelation

I hate labels. Sometimes, they’re appropriate (CANNIBAL CORPSE is nothing other than death metal), but they’re often misused. Will Haven is a band that is often mislabeled. They’re equally influenced by metal and hardcore, but they’re not metalcore (not what metalcore means in 2007). They’re emotional, but not emo or screamo.

When El Diablo was released back in 1997, Will Haven bridged the gap between the DEFTONES and EARTH CRISIS. Now, El Diablo will forever be linked to the mid-90s metalcore sound. Maybe that’s alright.

In the years since its release, many scam artists (nu-metal and screamo alike) have stolen from El Diablo. The thieves are missing one key ingredient. Will Haven understood how to be rhythmic, melodic, and heavy all at the same time. The scam artists were generally one of the three; often to miserable results. This is not Will Haven’s fault.

You’ll be hard pressed to find a more brooding audio diatribe that “Stick Up Kid”, the album’s first song. Enough time has passed. It’s okay to get reacquainted with this old friend. Speaking of which, Will Haven has reunited (without vocalist Grady) and a new record is on the way.

Here's the promo video for Will Haven's song "Carpe Diem".









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