REVIEW: August Burns Red - Season of Surrender

AUGUST BURNS RED. That’s it, that’s all we need to say to call to mind one of the most well-known, hard-grafting metalcore bands of the last 20 years, a band that have continued to expand the horizons of heavy metal and continuously see how much farther they can grow. They’ve returned to once again shatter their own limitations with their new album Season of Surrender, a ferocious onslaught of sound with instrumental intricacies and deep-rooted lyrics that awaken something inside. AUGUST BURNS RED refuse to let up throughout the album, even the quietest moments concealing something dark and powerful just beneath the surface, showcasing how they’ve evolved their sound to new levels.

Legions attacks immediately, vocalist Jake Luhrs unleashing savage screams to open the album alongside guest singer Mike Hranica’s (THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA) visceral fry screams, over Matt Grenier’s thundering drums, JB Brubaker and Brent Rambler ripping through riffs and high noted solos as bass Dustin Davidson keeps pace with a complex riff - it’s an opener that tells you to wake the fuck up and strap in. If you were to introduce the uninitiated to AUGUST BURNS RED, The Nameless is the song to do this with, featuring their renowned intricate riffs, brutal vocals, and a white-hot intensity that’s the band’s brand of hardcore sound. Behemoth is metalcore at its finest, whip-fast drums and riffs over echoing unsettling sounds, as Luhrs screams relentlessly, briefly pulling back on the heavy screams to vulnerably proclaim “I had to suffocate to stop the suffering”, before firing back in with low guttural screams.

Den of Thieves doesn’t let up on the ferocity of Season of Surrender, quickfire guitar work from Brubaker and Rambler working in tandem over a searing double-pedal rhythm, the pace and feel of the track changing on the breakdown but keeping its intensity sky-high over the cutting lyrics “there’s no forgiveness for you”. Sonic Salvation keeps the album consistency of shredding metalcore drums from Grenier and elaborate guitar solos and riffs, Luhrs’ screams paving the way for guest vocalist Jamie Hails (POLARIS) to harmonise the acidic screams, the entire track dropping momentarily to an unnerving quiet, a false sense of calm, before the duo vocalists cleave through the quiet once more. Distortion pierces through, quickly dominated by Davidson’s deliciously complex bassline, and we’re in the thick of Cerebral Malfunction and it’s frenzied instrumental strikes, guest band MAKE THEM SUFFER adding their alt-hardcore elements to it, the breakdown sinking into an unexpectedly pleasant different pace as vocalist Alex Reade sings clean lyrics over Sean Harmanis’ and Luhrs’ combined screams.

Interlude - Tear of the Clouds offers a brief respite of melancholy guitar riffs and bass that reverb gently over a rising storm in the background, the pattering of rain becoming a deluge as it shifts into the rapid assault of Whispers Like Splinters, steamrolling through with blistering lyrics “nothing is sacred when you’re feeling forsaken, I’d trade it for love”, as the instruments roar in the background like a maelstrom. S.O.S. feels like the track most experimented on in terms of sound, the pace and effects changing intermittently but still maintaining the power of a freight train, suddenly gathering speed in the middle as a choir of voices echo in the background before Brubaker and Rambler deliver guitar solos worthy of classic metal legends, descending back into Grenier’s unrelenting, pounding drums over raw growls.

New Horizons kicks down your door and your teeth in from the first fired up guitar riffs and drums, Davidson adding a bass bombardment underneath that rattles the teeth still left, Luhrs shifting from low guttural screams to fry screams as he surges in power singing “tomorrow is a new day, I don’t want to wake up”, his screams turning to frantic cries of “you’re not here”, before the track transforms into something that feels triumphant and entirely at odds with the lyrics. A distorted guitar riff edges us into final track Forged By Failure, raging yells quickly turning into incensed screams, the song switching up expectations from dramatically stripped back as Luhrs whispers “I can’t breathe”, before everything crashes together into a barrage of metalcore rhythms and emotionally charged lyrics, the song eventually fading out to a cinematic synth finish.

An album for those that have to scream to feel, those that want to be cathartically thrown around a pit, and those that simply appreciate metalcore at its finest, AUGUST BURNS RED have delivered another shockwave in the form of Season of Surrender.

Score: 9/10

Season of Surrender will be released on 5th June 2026 via Fearless Records.

Words: Julia Stark

Photos: Paxton Powell