5 career-defining Suicide Silence songs

Suicide Silence are not just a deathcore band, but a force that has helped to transform the landscape of heavy music for a new generation. Their first album, The Cleansing, was released in 2007, and since then the band has been through a whirlwind of adventures. Following up with four more full-lengths and the changing of vocalists after founding member Mitch Lucker’s death in 2012, Suicide Silence have established a strong body of work. In the 10 years since The Cleansing’s release, the band have pushed themselves to become one of the biggest names in heavy music today. Here are five standout songs that not only rank as kick-ass jams from the band, but in ways have an impact on the metal community, as well.

“Unanswered” – The Cleansing

What makes “Unanswered” essential beyond its heavy as hell anti-religious lyrics, is the trademark sound it embodies. From the first drum beat, the track flies off in one of the most devastating, ripping and pummeling flows to this day. The Cleansing was all about dark, disturbing, toned-down playing with dirty drum beats, along with Mitch Lucker’s banshee- like vocals.  A relentless song that goes off the rails with hectic energy, “Unanswered” was a hell of a way to open an album. While the record contains other classics such as “Eyes Sewn Shut,” “The Price Of Beauty” and “No Pity For A Coward,” it’s “Unanswered” where one finds the origin of Suicide Silence’s raw energy. 

“O.C.D.” – The Black Crown

Korn was perhaps one of the first acts to bring mental health into heavy music not as a joke, but as a serious conversation about strugglings and agony. In that same vein, Mitch Lucker used his own experiences with OCD to craft a direct lyrical presentation for what it means to live with this disorder. Going beyond “hand washing jokes,” Lucker dove right into the mental obsessions and endless activity that goes through the mind when dealing with OCD. Throughout the track, the band does an incredible job with the guitar sections reflecting a sliding hysteria, layering on fuzz and anxiety. Not only is this a bad ass song, it’s a reminder of how metal can address the difficulties of mental health.

“…And Then She Bled”No Time To Bleed

Out of all the Suicide Silence songs, this is a unique gem. Though it’s not their heaviest song instrumentally, and has no vocals from Lucker, what makes “…And Then She Bled” special is how it stood out at its time while paying tribute to old-school death metal. The song involves a 911 recording of a person calling in about a woman being attacked by a chimpanzee. The descriptions are horrific, and behind them the band plays with an eerie horror tone, intensifying the terror. This isn’t something new for bands, but it was cool to see a more popular heavy band attempt it. Rather than continue to just be a cookie-cutter deathcore group with heavy music, Suicide Silence took things in a death-metal direction, proving their genre could actually create creepy as hell and disturbing music. Many have accused deathcore for being watered-down death metal, the latter treading among darker subject matter. But with this track, we saw how this new generation could go up against the originators, and how the music of today can pull off style with theatrical elements.

“Doris” – Suicide Silence

From the new eponymous album featuring vocalist Eddie Hermida, there hasn’t been a song in so long that’s received such backlash. What took fans by surprise was not just the use of clean vocals, but also how it sounds similar to acts such as Korn or Deftones. While those similarities are there, Suicide Silence still maintain their own identity through the song. The instrumental sections fit into their own pattern outside of any band while entwining with Hermida’s vocal flow, making that unique sound all the more prominent. It’s a major risk for most bands to take on drastic changes in style when a fan base has come to love them for their previous accomplishments. The fact, however, is that these guys stuck to what they wanted to do, and that should be applauded. Not only is “Doris” a great song with haunting melodies, it’s a testament that artists should never be afraid to dive into new creative waters to push what they can do.

“You Only Live Once” – The Black Crown

“You Only Live Once” essentially makes for the theme of Suicide Silence. On The Black Crown, the band delivered  much catchier hooks,especially on this track. This would also be the last record to feature the late Mitch Lucker, whose voice and words ushered in a new sound of “heavy.” While earlier Suicide Silence (and even on this record) contained subject matter that was negative, “You Only Live Once” is one of profound positivity. Lucker’s lyrics are backed by a mix of heavy riffs, with an uplifting aura layered behind it all. Since their beginnings, the act has pushed every part of themselves to be heavy, honest and to make the art they want. “You Only Live Once” is the masterpiece that will stand the test of time when we look back and think of the music that shaped the sound we love today