Dying Wish – Flesh stays together (Review)

Dying Wish will be releasing their third album Flesh Stays Together on September 26th via SharpTone Records, and it’s easily the most ambitious and mature release in their discography so far. Produced by Will Putney (who you probably know from working with Knocked Loose, Full of Hell or Nothing), the record comes with ten tracks that are as heavy as they are emotional.

Vocalist Emma Boster described the album as “a discovery, a journey of grief and a statement,” and you can really feel that in every track. Right from the opener “I Don’t Belong Anywhere” you get punched in the face with that vicious mix of hardcore and metalcore. The clean vocals flow into this brutal assault, and when that “fuck you” drops into a breakdown it just goes stupid hard. Honestly, this is the biggest and heaviest Dying Wish have sounded so far.

“A Curse Upon Iron” keeps the energy high with relentless riffs, violent drumming, and Emma delivering some of her most pissed-off vocals to date. But what really stands out on Flesh Stays Together is how the band plays with contrast. The clean parts have this almost Spiritbox-like quality, melodic yet dark, showing a new emotional side that we didn’t get on the older records. “I’ll Know You’re Not Around” could easily belong on a big festival stage, with soaring clean parts breaking into massive riffs.

And then comes “Nothing Like You“, probably the biggest surprise on the record. It’s more vulnerable, way calmer than what you’d expect after all the chaos, but of course, it still finds space for a mosh part. It shows that Dying Wish don’t just want to be heavy for the sake of it. They want to write songs that actually hit you in the heart.

The title track “Flesh Stays Together” closes the album in the best way possible. It gives you room to breathe after all the violence, but still cuts deep emotionally, like a dagger in the chest. And, because it’s Dying Wish, they couldn’t resist closing with one final breakdown.

In the end, this is not just their most violent record but also the most diverse and mature. It balances pure heaviness with heartbreaking moments, like the best mix of 2000s hardcore and metalcore updated for today. Fans of Knocked Loose or Spiritbox should absolutely give this one a spin