''Felony'' is the third studio album by American

metalcore Metalcore (also known as metallic hardcore) is a fusion music genre that combines elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. As with other styles blending metal and hardcore, such as crust punk and grindcore, metalcore is noted for its use of ...

group

Emmure Emmure () is an American metalcore band formed in 2003. Originally based in New Fairfield, Connecticut, before moving to Queens, New York, the group has released eight albums, with their first public release being a 2006 EP entitled ''The Compl ...

under the Victory Records label. It was released on August 18, 2009. The album debuted at #60 on the Billboard Top 200 selling roughly 8,000 copies in its first week. ''Felony'' is also the first album to feature new members Mike Mulholland on guitar and Mike Kaabe on drums, replacing founding members Ben and Joe Lionetti, respectively.

Inspiration and musical style

Inspiration

The album is allegedly inspired by a real event in which vocalist Frankie Palmeri

assault An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in crim ...

ed his best friend by " ittinghim in the head with a bottle", which resulted in Palmeri being arrested. The lyrics for the album's

title track A title track is a song that has the same name as the album or film in which it appears. In the Korean music industry, the term is used to describe a promoted song on an album, akin to a single, regardless of the song's title. Title track may al ...

also references this anecdote.

Style

''Felony'' is the first album by Emmure to draw on more of a

nu metal Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, sometimes called aggro-metal) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop, alternative rock, funk, industrial, and grunge. Nu met ...

influence than their previous albums, evident the more-frequent bounce riffs and other tropes such as rapping vocals.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

stated "...their streamlined brand of East Coast hardcore,

death metal Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, feat ...

, and

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

is as reliable as it is predictable."

MetalSucks MetalSucks is a heavy metal music-themed news website. The site features reviews, interviews, information on latest metal releases and blog-like posts from the writers, most notably Vince Neilstein and Axl Rosenberg. History The site was foun ...

noted that the album features

gangsta rap Gangsta rap or gangster rap, initially called reality rap, emerged in the mid- to late 1980s as a controversial hip-hop subgenre whose lyrics assert the culture and values typical of American street gangs and street hustlers. Many gangsta rappe ...

elements. Several songs on the album reference popular culture media. Examples include the song title "I <3 EC2" (which is a reference to the film ''

Planet Terror ''Planet Terror'' is a 2007 American action horror film written and directed by Robert Rodriguez. Set in Texas, the film follows the survivors of a biochemical outbreak as they battle zombie-like creatures and a rogue military unit. It stars Rose ...

''). The song "The Philosophy of Time Travel" is the title to a fictional book from the film, ''

Donnie Darko ''Donnie Darko'' is a 2001 American science fiction psychological thriller film written and directed by Richard Kelly and produced by Flower Films. It stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Jena Malone, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Drew Barrymore, Mary McDonnell, Katha ...

''; the guitar

riffs A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accomp ...

played on the track are similar to the melody of the song from the film's score, much of the lyrics were inspired by the film as well."The Philosophy of Time Travel"
songfacts] The title of the second track, "I Thought You Met Telly and Turned Me Into Casper," is a reference to two characters from the 1995 film '' Kids (film), Kids''; Telly (

Leo Fitzpatrick Leonardo Aurellio Randy Fitzpatrick is an American actor and co-director of the Marlborough Chelsea gallery. He is best known as Telly in ''Kids'' (1995) and Johnny Weeks in ''The Wire'' (2002–2004). Career He was discovered at age 14 by d ...

) and his friend Casper (

Justin Pierce Justin Charles Pierce (March 21, 1975 – July 10, 2000) was an American-British actor and skateboarder who grew up in the U.S. He is best known for his roles as Casper in the 1995 film ''Kids'' and Roach in the 2000 film ''Next Friday''. On Ju ...

). The song "R2deepthroat" contains a verse of lyrics found in the 1995 hip hop song "

Shook Ones (Part II) "Shook Ones (Part II)" is the lead single from Mobb Deep's 1995 album '' The Infamous...''. The song is a sequel to the group's 1994 promotional single " Shook Ones", with similar lyrics, but less profanity. The original song is featured on the ...

" by

Mobb Deep Mobb Deep was an American hip hop duo from New York City. The duo consisted of rappers Prodigy and Havoc. They are considered to be among the principal progenitors of hardcore East Coast hip hopEdwards, Paul, 2009, ''How to Rap: The Art & Scien ...

, which was done as an homage to

New York hip hop East Coast hip hop is a regional subgenre of hip hop music that originated in New York City during the 1970s. Hip hop is recognized to have originated and evolved first in the Bronx, New York City. In contrast to other styles, East Coast hip ...

Track listing

Personnel

;Emmure * Frankie Palmeri - vocals * Jesse Ketive - guitar * Mike Mulholland - guitar * Mark Davis - bass guitar * Michael Kaabe - drums ;Production * Produced by Bryan Goldsman and Antoine Lussier * Engineered by Yanick Desgroseilliers and Antoine Lussier * Mixed by Antoine Lussier * Mastered by Pierre Rémillard * Photography by Jeremy Saffer

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Felony 2009 albums Emmure albums Victory Records albums