REVIEW: THE HARA - The Fallout

The Fallout is a metalcore explosion from Manchester trio THE HARA, embodying the angst filled depths that come with isolation and its consequent loss of trust in others. The soundscape is heavy, both in its low power chords and its synth-infused breakdowns, and lyrically stays heavy in discussions of toxic relationships and pessimistic acceptance of feeling like garbage. 

Album opener Trophy wastes no time, introducing the huge soundscape beneath whiny clean vocals (complimentary) and the first taste of the ethereal guitar shreds that are some of the best of this album can be heard. The first standout track is its follow up Easier to Die, impressing immediately with a punchy opener and a brassy snare drum and Josh Taylor’s solid screamed vocals that make up the chorus - a refreshing switch of convention from metalcore song structure. The angst shows through in its lyrics - “It’s easier to die than it is to want to live” - which creates a testimonial energy that lasts throughout the rest of The Fallout. 

As The Fallout hits its stride, it’s hard not to hear the similarities or inspiration that The Hara may have taken from scene dominators Bring Me the Horizon. The synth infused power chords with breakbeats, larger than life choruses, even the distinct Yorkshire brogue contribute to this equivocation. THE HARA pull these conventions off perfectly, though the similarity in the soundscapes do leave some wanting for a distinctive note in their sound.  

Twist the Arrows showcases THE HARA’s prowess in their breakdowns, with melody driven metal guitars mixed with synths and a 4 bar drum fill at the end of each chorus that scratches the itch in the brain. On the note of the drumming it mixes perfectly with the synths used throughout Twist the Arrows, and its final breakdown was perfection with the reintroduction of the shredding to reach crescendo, though dampened slightly with the sudden finish of the track. 

Its follow up Stay comes in with the scream that impressed earlier on in The Fallout, with a clean/scream call and response and a spacey feel that injects some variety at this point in the project. This said, the main weakness of The Fallout comes to the fore: the beginnings of many of the tracks don’t capture the ear, which is a shame for the quality of them once they get started. Going back to the Yorkshire brogue - sometimes Taylor’s cadence sounds very much like Yungblud, which takes the ears aback when the vocals are atop the metalcore soundscapes of THE HARA.

This said, after Stay, album highlight and second single The System rings out. The broken beat intro opens for a punchy pop punk first verse with the vocals spat out as the track builds. The lyrics paint a picture of disaffection with forced conformity and everything needing to be done to prop up the status quo (“maybe I’m designed to waste away/are we all designed to waste away”). What makes The System stand out is its breakdown: its build starts with a sample that sounds more like hard house than drum and bass, a welcome change in the electronic metalcore space, before exploding into a stabby breakdown with a china lead and prog-style shreds. Screaming about breakdowns and becoming a shell of oneself make up the final bridge as well as the return of the sample from the beginning to craft pretty much a perfect song. 

The last act of The Fallout is the strongest, starting with Psycho Killer, a campy yet angsty track about falling so far into isolation you begin to  begin to feel like a silent and disturbed individual. The chorus is mixed to sound as if the vocals are being muttered into a megaphone, detailing being a killer in the dark, atop a drum led spooky soundscape that contrasts the slowed tempo and lighter verses - it feels very Ice Nine Kills without the textual references. Next is the most recent single Kings, a conventional ‘you’ll fall eventually’ kind of breakup song, then Bury Me starts to ring out: a straight power ballad packed with angst such as in “My guardian angel is a little unfaithful to me”, and the reintroduction of the breakbeat in the postmix. THE HARA flex their breakdown muscles again in the breakdown for Bury Me, with that breakbeat in the breakdown led by another china-led drumline (the best bit about metalcore).

Flagship single Violence with As December Falls, coming in with the beloved china lead to craft a headbanger with layered vocals about two people being too toxic to one another. The anger at the subject can be felt in the rawness of the vocals from Taylor and Bethany Hunter Jiménez, while the chord progression swings right until the end to create an addictive track we wish was longer than 2:32. 

Follow up Intergalactic Generation takes a more conceptual approach to the problems of the current generation - that life is a “simulation/handcuffed by creation” with the strong inference of being anti AI that as a writer is easy to get behind. It's fitting also that they drop the electronic elements present in the rest of The Fallout, then the finale Enemy keeps in with thematic music with a frantic opening to pair with lyrics describing being chased. The guitar work comes into the fore for the finale, with the shreds and runs adding groove to the unapologetic heaviness to the soundscape. Enemy is a high energy closer with the breakdown to seal the deal, including divine midphrase beat changes before The Fallout comes to a hard stop.    

The Fallout is THE HARA carving out their place in the metalcore space, making apparent their skills both instrumentally and creating pull-no-punches breakdowns. While in some places their influences felt a little too on the sleeve, and some of the intros did not fully captivate, The Fallout holds attention from beginning to end while the rawness and angst in its lyrics make THE HARA the perfect place to go for any Metalcore fans looking for their next fix in the clean vocal end of the subgenre. 

Score: 7/10

The Fallout was released on 23rd January 2026 via Mascot Records.

Words: Julia Brunton

Photos: Cosmic Joke