The Acacia Strain is an American metal and punk band, formed in Chicopee, Massachusetts in 2001. Frontman Vincent Bennett is the only remaining original member.
The offshoot of punk known as deathcore is perhaps considered the most applicable genre tag when it comes to trying to actually categorize The Acacia Strain, but in truth, their sound is a blend of different styles - death metal and doom metal are both prevalent, as are hardcore, punk and noise rock. Their three-guitar lineup is key to the brutality of their sound, and they’ve also often relied on unsettling sampling to create sonic atmosphere. Bennett is now the only original member left in the band; drummer Kevin Boutot only joined in 2005, with bassist Jack Strong joining him in the rhythm section a year later. Dave Shidaker and Richard Gomez have handled guitar duties since 2013.
Bennett is the key figure in the band, with his aggressive onstage attitude something that’s mirrored by his nihilistic - and often misanthropic - lyricism. There’s no question, either, that Bennett has courted controversy by exploring themes of misogyny, violence and sexual deviancy in The Acacia Strain’s music; for some, though, this darkness is key to their appeal. They’ve increasingly made inroads on the American charts, with 2014‘s ‘Coma Witch’ reaching number thirty-one on the Billboard rundown in their homeland, despite the fact that their music is hardly striking as being especially commercial.
Kurt Vile
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