Sometimes, all you need to be relevant is a combination of genres, and US trio Young & In The Way are very relevant (albeit I'm reviewing this over six months after its release). Combining crushing crust punk that takes as much influence from old Entombed as it does from Discharge with Norwegian black metal, Y&ITW make their unorthodox union work with a hefty dose of emotional fervour – this is is impressively angry. I fell for the album almost immediately: opener Betrayed by Light kicks off with a snarl of the album's title, soon building into blasting crust that is heavy and fast enough to count as black metal already; the guitar tone and crashing drums soon provide the vital atmosphere needed to truly elevate it, switching suddenly to goth-draped piano in a terrific tease. Fortunately, the following tracks deliver, harsh, heavy, and black metal to the core, if never quite all-in on the blasting black metal, fond of mid-paced chugging but clearly far more metal than punk.

You get the sense of a band finding its best sound rather than one already there, however. There's enough variety to make this far more than a one-note violence-fest, but some of the moments work better than others. The downright In The Nightside Eclipse-worship of Self-Inflicted is obvious, but passionate, and carries you along with it, while We Are Nothing and Take My Hand's slower pace works well for them. I'm less fond of the latter half of Take My Hand, which has an interlude that sounds like a step into post-rock territory and is a misstep, as is Shadow of Murder, which switches suddenly to gloomy violin and acoustic strumming, before introducing some downright weird vocals. Nice try, guys, but that needs work.

'Needs work' is really the takeaway from this album, because as enjoyable as it is, a little maturing and Young And In The Way will be a real force to reckon with. Closing ten-minuter Embrace Extinction is the real proof of this, a tight and intense churner that uses its time well and hints at greater atmospheric heights. When Life Comes to Death shows real potential, and fans of either genre above who don't mind steps outside of their comfort zone will appreciate this.