ICE NINE KILLS, The Silver Scream | 4GEMZ 💎

1. Ice Nine Kills, “Stabbing in the Dark”

💿 The Silver Scream • 🏷 Fearless • 📅 2018 

“Your kids won’t make it home tonight / With a madness void of reason / I kill with every strike / I’ll haunt you day after day / Knife after knife…”  Clearly, murder is on the minds of 🎙 Ice Nine Kills on 🎵 “Stabbing in the Dark.” “Stabbing in the Dark” appears as the third song from 💿 The Silver Scream, the metalcore collective’s fifth studio album. The album is steeped in horror – specifically cinematic horror.

As the lyrics from the second verse suggest, the songwriting is creepy and ‘killer’ to the nth degree.  Furthermore, the dramatic music matches the unsettling nature of the lyrics, flourishing in a most damned minor key.  After a relatively slow, enigmatic start, the beginning with a breakdown following the chorus, Ice Nine Kills grow utterly hellish, chocked-full of aggression that is far removed from heaven.  Of course, the connection with night is both darkness and of course, murder, which often occur during the nighttime hours.  The chorus is a big-time selling point.

“When the hands of fate
Fall on the midnight hour
Behind the mask of hate
I don the devil’s power
If there’s life in the shadows
Let the knife leave its mark
When the certainty of safety feels like stabbing
Stabbing in the dark.”

Also appears on 🔽:
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2. Ice Nine Kills, “Thank God It’s Friday”

💿 The Silver Scream • 🏷 Fearless • 📅 2018

“We’ve all been laid to rest / Our epitaph reads, ‘Mommy knows best’ / A word of warning from beyond the grave / That must be understood / Throats get slit in this neck of the woods.” What An unsettling verse to say the least! 🎵 “Thank God It’s Friday” arrives as the second cut on 💿 The Silver Scream.

“Thank God It’s Friday” features unclean, shouted vocals on the verses and pre-chorus.  In addition to those unclean vocals, the music itself is incredibly intense – understatement.  Even given the gritty nature of the song, there are plenty of melodic moments.  A prime example is the memorable chorus:

“He drowned in all our sins
He drowned in our mistakes
Fueled by the flood, we pay in blood
The curse of Crystal Lake
He’s down there deep within
We’ve found there's no escape
You just scratched the surface of the curse of Crystal Lake.”

So, what is this curse of Crystal Lake mentioned in the chorus? Well, a unique, cinematic soundbite following the second verse provides insight:

“Did you know my son drowned in this lake?
He should’ve been supervised
But the counselors were off having filthy sex
His name was Jason
And today is his birthday.”

Interesting to say the least.  Continuing, “Thank God It’s Friday” continues to balance melodic and more raucous moments.  For example, half of the bridge is melodic, before embracing raucousness prior to the breakdown section.

Also appears on 🔽:
🔗 🎧 11 Thankful Songs to Show Gratitude For

3. Ice Nine Kills, “Merry Axe-Mas”

💿 The Silver Scream • 🏷 Fearless • 📅 2018

“Twas the night before Christmas / At just five years old / My parents were butchered / In the blistering cold.” Ice Nine Kills don’t establish the most exuberant, jolly, holiday spirit on 🎵 “Merry Axe-Mas.” The opening lyrics are totally messed up.  Regardless, “Merry Axe-Mas” fits the over-the-top, dramatic nature of the horror-laden LP, transforming a highly anticipated, beloved annual holiday into total, murderous, and morbid hellishness.

“You will believe in me / Slaughtered under the tree / And I won’t leave a witness / So much for a ‘Merry Christmas’.” The villain of “Merry Axe-Mas” is Santa Claus (“In his suit stained with red”), while the source is likely 1984 horror film, 🎦 Silent Night Deadly Night. Safe to say, Christmas is totally ruined, whether it’s the brutal nature of the music or the totally unforgiving lyrics (“Now Santa’s claws are out / The sinners scream and shout / I made sure the noose was yuletide tight / So much for a ‘Silent Night’”). Worth noting, there was actually a notable mass murder that occurred during Christmas time by 🔫 Ronald Gene Simmons.  Sadly, of the 16 people he would murder during his killing spree, 14 were members of Simmons’ own family.  This happened post-Silent Night Deadly Night in 1987.  The 49-year-old Simmons was sentenced to death and executed in 1990.

Also appears on 🔽:
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4. Ice Nine Kills, “IT is the End”

Ft. JR Wasilewski and Buddy Schaub (Less Than Jake) & Will Salazar (Fenix TX)

💿 The Silver Scream • 🏷 Fearless • 📅 2018

“Catch me at the big top / Buried underground / You know I’m not clowning around. / Even with a smile / From ear to fucking ear.” The horror is legit on 🎵 “IT is the End,” which serves as the concluding cut from 💿 The Silver Scream. Worth noting, The Silver Scream was rereleased in 2019 in an expanded edition (💿 The Silver Scream (The Final Cut)). “IT is the End” finds its inspiration from 🎦 IT, specifically the infamous Pennywise.

“Oh, Georgie / You can trust me sweet child / Step right this way…” Uh oh! The record begins with an intro, which sets the tone of this chilling number.  Towards the end of the intro, the confirmation of IT is loud and clear – “IT’s nothing to fear / When I feast on your flesh / You’ll see that we all float down… / HERE!” Ice Nine Kills proceed to deliver frightening, twisted lyrics, such as “You know what makes me smile? / Devoured juveniles / Their innards tangled in my twisted grin / Chuckled so hard I choked.” “IT is the End” indeed, and that’s a prime example of a negative connotation!

Also appears on 🔽:
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