GRAVEYARD SHIFT

Personnel: Tom Hane (drums). Audio Mixer: Josh Wilbur. Editor: Jeff Dunne. Photographer: Crystal Johnson. On their fourth set of nocturnal gothcore, Motionless in White continue the evolution away from generic metalcore they began on 2012's Infamous. Grasping the late-'90s sounds of kindred ghouls like Orgy, Marilyn Manson, and Rob Zombie by the throats, Graveyard Shift matures the Chris Motionless-led outfit, smoothing some edges with improved production and tighter songwriting. For fans of the aforementioned groups -- Orgy especially -- the comparisons are unavoidable. Motionless affects a full-on Jay Gordon creep-croon -- itself an homage to Manson -- that is most noticeable on tracks like "Untouchable," "Loud (Fuck It)," and the pornographic doom of "Rats," a creepy delight that includes the threatening line "Shut your mouth before I fuck it" (one of the many shock-for-the-sake-of-it lyrics found on Graveyard Shift). Later, Motionless further pushes the boundaries of lyrical taste on the blistering "Soft," an aggressive blast that terrorizes with a violent promise to "fuck your face with a switchblade." Other highlights include the sequel to Reincarnate's "Dead as Fuck" titled "Not My Type: Dead as Fuck 2." Another fellatio romp with a living dead girl, the playfully spooky track amps up the mayhem with B-movie schlock that sounds like the Nightmare Before Christmas stitched together with early Zombie or Portrait-era Manson. Jonathan Davis appears on the huge anthem "Necessary Evil," which stomps as hard as Korn. Fans who were concerned about the band getting too mellow with the alt-metal changes can rest easy and head straight for "Queen for Queen," "The Ladder," "Voices," and "570," which bring the breakdowns and emetic screaming of classic Motionless. For all the scare tactics and violence, the album closes on "Eternally Yours" -- as romantic and touching as the band may ever get -- wherein Motionless croons "I'm more than willing to rot in hell with you." Graveyard Shift is a highly enjoyable and entertaining continuation for a band that knowingly winks along with the madness they concoct. ~ Neil Z. Yeung