Killswitch Engage

Boston metal monsters Killswitch Engage tear through their latest CD, 2006's As Daylight Dies, like they have just one night to right some unnamed wrong. Singer Howard Jones loads up on melodic howls that transport the band to a tuneful territory most of its contemporaries stay far, far away from. A pair of guitarists pull Jones along, shredding most mightily in songs like "Daylight Dies," "My Curse," and "The Arms of Sorrow," which details yet another engaging band quality: its ability to play soft once in a while.

Tour openers Every Time I Die steep their metalcore in a working-class awareness that mirrors their Buffalo roots. They swing throughout their new album, The Big Dirty. Too bad singer Keith Buckley isn't capable of much more than screaming really fucking loud. Meanwhile, Australia's Parkway Drive steamrolls over Horizons with an abundance of genre clichés — including demons-from-hell vocals and finger-slicing solos. Both warm-up bands could use a dose of Killswitch Engage's occasional and rare subtlety.