''Rise of the Lion'' is the fourth studio album by American

metalcore Metalcore is a broadly defined fusion genre combining elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk, originating in the 1990s United States and becoming popular in the 2000s. Metalcore typically has aggressive verses and melodic choruses, combined ...

band

Miss May I Miss May I is an American metalcore band from Troy, Ohio. Formed in 2007, they signed to Rise Records in 2008 and released their debut album, '' Apologies Are for the Weak'' through the label while the members were still attending high school. T ...

. It was released in Australia, Canada, and Mexico on April 25, 2014, and in the US on April 29.

Background

In the first major interview for the album, vocalist Levi Benton spoke with Jake Denning of

AbsolutePunk ''AbsolutePunk'' was a website, online community, and alternative music news source founded by Jason Tate (the most recent CEO). The website mainly focused on artists who are relatively unknown to mainstream audiences, but it was known to featu ...

, going into a few of Denning's favorite tracks from the album, but also explained the background behind the album title:

"Well, it's a very fan based record. All the lyrics are letters back from letters we've gotten from fans and haven't been able to write back. There are some topics we haven't faced, but things that have touched while reading letters in the past. We see many tattoos and crazy stuff with the lion and how much it means to fans. Basically the lion is a symbol for us and all of our fans, we just wanted to dedicate this to them. This is our follow-through record, and we think this is going to be a big one and a big fan-base growing album for us. This is the rise of the lion."

Critical reception

At ''

Alternative Press Alternative press may refer to: Individual publications * ''Alternative Press'' (magazine), an American music magazine Alternative journalism * Alternative media ** Alternative media (U.S. political left) ** Alternative media (U.S. political r ...

'', Phil Freeman rated the album four stars out of five, saying that "there's a definite humanity to the music" on the album that features "chugs and clean choruses all the throat-punching impact any fan could ask for." However, he writes that "Ultimately, this is a forceful, headlong album with no ballads or restful interludes among it 10 track", which is "sure to make fans very happy."

Track listing

Personnel

;Miss May I * Levi Benton – unclean vocals, lyrics * Ryan Neff – bass guitar, clean vocals, lyrics, piano * B.J. Stead – lead guitar, backing vocals * Justin Aufdemkampe – rhythm guitar, backing vocals * Jerod Boyd – drums ;Production * Production and mixing by

Terry Date Terry Date (born January 31, 1956) is an American record producer and audio engineer specializing in rock genres, especially heavy metal. He is well known for his work with Metal Church, Dream Theater, Soundgarden, Overkill, Pantera, Dark Ang ...

* Engineering by Terry Date and Kevin Mills * Mastering by

Ted Jensen Ted Jensen (born September 19, 1954) is an American mastering engineer, known for having mastered many recordings, including the Eagles' '' Hotel California'', Green Day's '' American Idiot'' and Norah Jones' ''Come Away with Me''. Early life ...

Sterling Sound George Marino (April 15, 1947June 4, 2012) was an American mastering engineer known for working on albums by rock bands starting in the late 1960s. Biography Marino was born on April 15, 1947, in the New York City borough The Bronx. He attended ...

, New York * Pre-production by Nathan Hook at Refraze Studios, Dayton, Ohio * Composition and lyrics by Michael Brookbank

References

{{Authority control 2014 albums Miss May I albums Rise Records albums Albums produced by Terry Date