Candiria WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU . . . (Type A)

The cover of the first proper Candiria album in three years is a photo of their mangled touring van, a harrowing symbol of the 2002 highway accident that almost killed them. Since then, the NYC metalcore pioneers have undergone a serious transformation. Hip-hop and jazz are still a big part of their sound, but for the first time, they also take a stab at good old-fashioned melodic hard rock on What Doesn’t Kill You . . . It works: frontman Carley Coma can carry a tune as well as he screams and raps, and the band sound as if they’d been writing sharp hooks since day one. Candiria’s new approach doesn’t manifest itself on the aggressive first single, "Blood," which sticks to their trademark polyrhythmic heaviness. But there’s no denying the spectral choruses on "Remove Yourself" and "Down," both of which bear the imprint of the group’s new mainstream producer, David Bendeth (Breaking Benjamin). They stretch out on the disc’s second half: "9MM Solution" is delirious hip-hop, and "The Rutherford Experiment" is an ecstatic jazz-rock instrumental. This is a well-executed crossover move by one of the smartest bands in metal.

(Candiria open for Kittie this Friday, August 6, at the Palladium, 261 Main Street in Worcester; call 508-797-9696. The following night, August 7, they play the Webster Theatre in Hartford; call 860-525-5553.)