Bellicist - The Eternal Recurrence (2011)

When a band comes on as technically strong as this one, I admit to feeling some apprehension that I'm in for a soulless train wreck of technical wankery and sterile pop studio polish that won't turn out so memorable. Somehow, Missouri's Bellicest manage to avoid this stylistic sand trap by blending the old in with the new. You'll still be hearing harried arpeggio sweeps and ass-loads of technicality, yet they are just as content bursting into an old school New York brutal chug-fest or some churning Florida evil, while mixing up the vocals between guttural norms and rancid snarls. The Eternal Recurrence is a pretty staggering effort for a debut, and I doubt these guys would remain unsigned for long, but it's worth checking out even if you're normally averse to such proficient punishment.

I can't say I entirely loved the production of the record, but it very much gets the job done. You can hear every little spike of lead guitar, and yet the rhythm tracks are deep, dark and intensely pummeling, machine-like in their execution. The drummer, bassist and guitar player are all quite insane, and about the only time they ever dip in quality is when they enter a brick-house slam segment like in the middle of "Insignificant". And yet, even when something like this occurs, they follow it up with the unexpected...in this case, a wild little bass solo and a rupture of melodic death metal played at a far higher speed. But there are other tracks here which are completely surgical bursts of intensity that brake for absolutely no one ("Philistines" or the more spastic "For Your War"). They're quite tight at incorporating all these fast-break technical thrash parts played at such speeds that bands like Cynic and Atheist come to mind, or perhaps the Swedish Theory in Practice, but there's that added substrate of brutality here for those who like their neolithic fist fighting death metal.

Surprisingly, there's a lot of diversity in the songwriting, and they'll attempt some longer pieces in here, like "The Iscariot Path" which is almost 9 minutes, or "To Serve the Pigs" which is over 11. The latter is a grooving bludgeon at a slower pace, while the latter alternates between airier, noisy passages and churning Morbid Angel solutions, and neither of them manages to bore me despite their swollen enormity. And it's this reason that The Eternal Recurrence functions: not only for the obvious skill of the musicians, but for the fact that they throw so much at you and somehow keep it interesting enough to remain attentive. That's not easy for an album which sounds like the ungodly spawn of an orgy between Skinless, Morbid Angel, Necrophagist, Arsis and Behemoth, but that's what these guys do. Even lyrically, the band is more concerned with sociopolitical affairs than they are with gore and zombies, which might not be unique, but it's an interesting match for the style they play. The Eternal Recurrence not perfect, and I don't really love all the vocals or individual riffs, but taken as a whole it's formidable enough that people ought to start taking notice.

Verdict: Win [7.5/10]

http://www.myspace.com/bellicist

Origin - Entity (2011)

Whilst I've followed the band since their s/t debut at the turn of the century, it's taken me some time to come up to speed with one of Origin's albums. I had long considered the band to be borne more of finesse than songwriting, reliant on their boundary-kissing speed and technical precision more than memorable compositions. Riffs were falling into place on the albums, evoking admiration among the speed and brutality-starved, but the riffs were not falling into place upon my consciousness. This all changed with 2008's Antithesis, the first of Origin's full-lengths that I can honestly admit to enjoying, with a stronger subtext in the atmosphere and guitars that managed their clinical acceleration into digestible and admirable rhythms.

Well, the successor Entity has at last arrived, painting crushing and dynamic scopes across the cosmic and internal spans of the Kansas band's lyrical concepts, and you can be sure as shit that all of the band's considerable technical components are in place. Arpeggios and noodling all over the place, balanced off against the velocity of John Longstreth's near mechanical drumming skills, the percussive rhythm guitars which often verve into exotic, Middle Eastern notation, and the simultaneously Deicide-styled guttural and rasped vocals. But I found that it took some time for the album to pick up. The showy "Expulsion of Fury" is not more than wailing indulgence that cedes into a forgettable if frenzied palm mute chugging sequence, and there isn't really a single tune that caught my imagination or memory until the brief acoustic sequence "The Descent".

At that point, or rather at the eighth track "Committed", the album takes a turn for the better, with its slicing and pummeling discordant start/stop patterns. "Banishing Illusion" has some of the best, frenetic guitar melodies that conjure an inherent atmospheric lacking on so much of the album's first half; while "Consequence of Solution" is 7+ minutes of blasted and shifting variation which can't help to beat on the conscience with at least a handful of the riffs, and the closer "Evolution of Extinction" is harried and freakish enough for the first half, with lightning fills and schizoid, punishing riffs forming the backbone. Ultimately, though, I just didn't hear much of a reason to return to this. With each successive spin, the album failed to generate any nuance or subtlety outside of the members' instrumental dominance, a trio of crack commandos firing off sniper rounds that never execute their targets. While Antithesis was no less storming, I felt the tracks there were meatier and had more to pin my ears into their vortex of exploration. This time, while as flurried and technical as ever, I felt too constrained to a vacuum of interest.

Verdict: Indifference [6.75/10]

http://www.facebook.com/Origin

Beyond Creation - The Aura (2011)

This is the first full-length from the Québec metallers - I have been patiently awaiting for this ever since I had to manually rip their demo off of their MySpace since there were no actual copies anywhere else - and the wait has not been in vain. For the uninitiated, I would describe Beyond Creation as a more brutal Canadian Obscura.

What I Liked:
I'll start with the obvious elephant in the mix - Dominic "Forest" Lapointe. I would be lying if I didn't say that the bass tone on this album is insane - though in my defence Beyond Creation was my first exposure to his work that I enjoyed (I really enjoy Augury now though). Vocalist/guitarist Simon Girard is another new vocalist I am really digging (and mimicking), his vocal styling mix is really well done - I especially enjoy the near pig-squeals mixed in at times. The guitars by Girard and Kévin Chartré are on par with most popular tech death out there today - that is to say extremely tight and well done (and to a level I can only wish I could play though that's to be said of most tech death). The drumming by Guyot Begin-Benoit is relentless throughout the album, easily up to par with anything someone like John Longstreth (Origin, Gorguts) has recorded in my opinion.

What I Didn't Like:
I only have one small critique - I felt that the vocals from the three demo songs were a bit different since they were rerecorded and my initial reaction was that the original vocal style was a bit better - something I'm sure most people will not understand or care about.

This is an album I have seen in some circles become really popular, and as someone listening to these guys for awhile, I am extremely glad this debut is getting the word-of-mouth support it needs. The whole album is solid from start to finish, again and again I find myself lost listening to this on repeat - Montréal/Québec metal never ceases to amaze me.

Verdict: Epic Win [9.75/10]

http://www.myspace.com/beyondcreationofficial

Archspire - All Shall Align (2011)

I came across this band in my last.fm recommendations list (it's actually useful) and I was floored by the debut from this new Canadian band. Hailing from Vancouver, British Colombia, this quintet plays technical death metal reminding me of another new band, the Ukranian Monumental Torment, and a bit like Origin - though honestly it's hard to think of suitable comparisons for these guys as I write this.

What I Liked:
For me the first thing that really clicked was the vocals - Oli Peters has the intensity Erik Rutan (Hate Eternal) wished he had mixed with the vocal speed and patterning of someone like Francesco Paoli (Fleshgod Apocalypse, ex-Hour of Penance). Peters sounds seriously pissed off, and he can write extremely catchy tech death vocal sections that flow seamlessly from growls to scream and while his lyrics are mostly science fiction-themed and well written, this isn't something you will be singing or headbanging along with very often.
Instrumentally, this is an extremely talented band. Dean Lamb and Tobi Morelli play some really catchy guitar riffs for tech death though some of it is perhaps helped a bit by the vocals matching the riffs so fluidly and seamlessly, you decide. The drums by Spencer Prewett are pounding and thankfully never boring or tired though when they're added into the whole mix they sometimes get forgotten in the cacophony. There's finally the bass-work by Jaron Evil which mostly follows the two guitarists, though as the bass is quite prominent in the mix this is not a problem in the least - one of my favourite bass tones this year so far, extremely satisfying.

What I Didn't Like:
The album did not feel long enough at 32 minutes - it's a pretty lame complaint honestly, but I felt that I was not exhausted after the 32 mins like I am with some albums, or content with the length like I am with other tech death albums (the Diskreet comes to mind) - the album closer "All Shall Align" while good musically doesn't 'close' the album suitably and just leaves me wanting more (in part due to it being a encore of the second to last song "Rapid Elemental Dissolve"). Also for once on a tech death album I think the drums could have been brought up a bit into the mix - as I mentioned earlier they feel somewhat lost at times.

This is a solid album, not much more I can say. I don't like writing track-by-track reviews, but I will say that "Archspire" and "Ascendance to the Summoning" would be my two favourite tracks on the album. Tech deathheads will enjoy this I think, though if you're like me you'll be clamoring for more eventually - and hopefully we won't have to wait too long.

Verdict: Epic Win [9.0/10]

http://www.myspace.com/archspire

Cephalic Carnage - Misled by Certainty (2010)

Here it is, the new album from the perpetually baked Colorado grinders and from the first spin I can tell that this is their best one yet - depending on if you liked the direction taken in 2007's tech death/grind Xenosapien. Spoiler: I did.

"The Incorrigible Flame" starts the album off a bit slow, while a good song it's not nearly as catchy as the rest of the album. It's not until the second track "Warbots A.M." that I feel that the album really starts. Combining blistering speed, catchy tech riffs, and a killer beat, this song gets the blood pumping and the head whipping. "Abraxas of Filth" follows and it showcases Nick Schendzielos' sexy bass playing (so far second only to Erlend Caspersen's performance on the Hideous Deformity debut) that is so often lost behind the drums and guitars. "Pure Horses" is presumably an excuse to use a horse sample (approved). "Cordyceps Humanis" meanders a bit at the beginning (for a doom song) but picks up after the sample discussing cordyceps fungus. Same with "Dimensional Modulation Transmography" which picks up at the one minute mark and never lets down. "Ohrwurm" is possibly the best song on the album, again displaying the great bass work and technical chops of the band while never straying into their older habits of mashing riffs together. "When I Arrive" on the other hand is my favourite track on the album, great song about Jesus coming back and a ending chorus that much like "Dying Will Be the Death of Me" is catchy despite itself. "A King and a Thief" is a great experimental crusher with a twisted solo. "Power and Force" unfortunately flys by at a blistering speed with no catchy hook to grab the senses until the very end - disappointing when stacked up against the rest of the album. Finally comes the closer "Repangaea" which busts out the sax again (someone has been listening to the new Ihsahn) and a slow broiling groove highly reminiscent of something off Mastodon's Crack the Skye.

Lenzig Leal's vocals are as insane as ever, never letting up and never becoming boring (Inherit Disease I'm looking at you); John Merryman's kick is on fire; Steve Golberg and Zac Joe bring not only the weed-influenced riffs but also the solos (notably the 'Michael Keene' solo in"The Incorrigible Flame"); and as I mentioned earlier, Nick Schendzielos brings the bass with a fury and luckily he has the production to back it up.

To sum it up, Misled by Certainty sees the band and producer Dave Otero (the same producer of Martriden's latest) take the classic Cephalic Carnage formula and create an extremely catchy, complex, and crushing tech death metal album while also making their most mature and accessible album to date. So grab your nearest drug-of-choice and enjoy the carnage.

Verdict: Epic Win [9/10] (When I arrive and I am recrucified...)

http://www.myspace.com/cephaliccarnage

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Decrepit Birth - Polarity (2010)

Californians Decrepit Birth made an instant splash amidst the brutal tech death underground with their 2003 debut ...And Time Begins, but I didn't find myself falling for their mix of extremity and excess musical prowess until the the second album, Diminishing Between Worlds, which came out a half decade later in 2008. Like other bands from their coast Odious Mortem, Severed Savior, The Faceless, and Abysmal Torment, they're one of those 'whole package' deals: amazingly coherent and tight with their instruments, capable of writing damn near limitless volley of riffs, and brutal enough in the breakdown department to please the less demanding, violent element of death metal showgoers. Polarity sees the band expand upon their prior effort slightly, with a touch more musical aptitude and willingness to expand and incorporate extra classical and progressive influence to their compositions.

You won't hear a track go by on this record without some well-written, flurry of melodic scales and strokes that perks the ears directly to attention, and it is the balance of this ambition against the expected, double kick/blasted forays that ultimately makes it a success. The vocals are your typical, vomited gutturals, and I feel that at times they feel a little too one-track and uninspired when compared against the music itself, occasionally joined by a snarling companion, but it is a rare death metal band these days with a vocalist that can tear your entrails out and then step on them, so its best in many cases to play it 'safe', if you can call a grown man hammering you with orcish grunts 'safe'. The mix is professionally executed, with all notes available to the ear and a steady balance of instruments. Decrepit Birth put a lot of work into this record, and you'll be able to process every second of tension and release that the band thrives upon.

Polarity seems to me what be the natural extension of the Florida legends Death had they advanced into a more brutal framework instead of sputtering out with a weak and powerless effort like The Sound of Perseverance. You can hear Chuck's influence in a lot of the thin, crisp melodic riffing which takes the inspiration of a Death, Symbolic or Individual Thought Patterns to another level when set against the incredible, forceful precision of the drummer and rhythm guitars. Scales abound here, given just the right processed gleam to contribute an ever twisting distraction for the 38 minutes of the album. Often a keyboard will be used to further push the atmospheric envelope, and the band's brainy, cosmic lyrics match up very well with the almost scientific methodology of the performance. In this regards, they are very similar to the act Obscura, so fans of those Germans that haven't already boarded this interstellar train should step up, because now is the time.

The album moves consistently from the gently woven melodic patterns that christen "A Departure of the Sun (Ignite the Tesla Coil" to the grand sorrow that burdens the simpler chord and clean guitar selection of the instrument outro "Darkness Embrace", and the entire work is reined in under 40 minutes, with no composition becoming so indulgent or far out that you would ever become exhausted (assuming you enjoy this style). I found some rapture in the acrobatic bounce and kick of the title track "Polarity"; the thick hammering of the chugged rhythm guitars, harmonic spills and storm ascension of "The Quickening of Time"; the unswerving juggernaut of percussive picking and sweeps that realize "Symbiosis"; and the great melodies spitting through the eye of "The Resonance", gravity optional. However, there really is not a single track which will not offer some enticement, even the 1 minute hyper riffing prog-death barrage of "A Brief Odyssey in Time". It's remarkable how much Decrepit Birth can compact into a moment.

If you whine and cuss about all things modern in death metal, then let me state, Polarity is just not for you, nor is anything else by this band. Here, they skirt along the boundaries of what tech death is capable of, but I don't think they honestly escape the universal pull of familiarity all that much. The vocals are not quite excellent, but so few are in the modern death landscape, and as a percussive symbiont to the drumming, they suffice. What Decrepit Birth do best here is sculpt an engaging onslaught of music which leaves the gore and butchery of the genre far below, in terrestrial urban chaos, while this band escapes to seed and explore new worlds, as if they were a rocket ship of symphonic-minded, brutal ballast, a Stanley Kubrick sweeping his vision across the pulsing notes of the firmament.

Verdict: Win [8.25/10] (balanced in the paradox of contradictions)

http://www.myspace.com/decrepitbirth

Iniquity - Five Across the Eyes (2000)

At first I didn't like this album's title much, and I still don't much care for it, but it is an accurate descriptor for what this album feels like. Getting slapped in the face. Denmark's now-defunct Iniquity will devour you, digest you, and shit you into the gutter. What we have is very fast, brutal technical death metal with groove elements, nicely interspersed within the length of the album. Think Hate Eternal, Nile, Decapitated, etc. with occasionally a bit of grooving goodness.

The album literally wastes no time with intros, immediately hammering you with a full on assault of sound. Track one "Inhale the Ghost" interplays discordant lead guitar struggling for purchase amongst the devastating rhythm section. Around 1:50 it slows into a trippy little segment, the first breakdown amongst some wonderful ones on the album. This piece has a faint trace of exoticism, almost Egyptian, though the (pretty awesome) lyrics are not reflective of that.

Abused, abusing, accused of using

Dealing, declining, fatally resigning

Push the needle, inhale the ghost

Crush the pill, increase the dose

Track two "Surgical Orb" does not fuck around, as a friend who listens exclusively to this kind of stuff would say: this shit is serious, man. The songwriting is once again solid, discussing a person operated upon by aliens as a shell for use of infiltrating the human race. Yes! Musically it backs up the concept one hundred percent.

Track eight "The Rigormortified Grip" is honestly one of the most absolutely killer songs I've heard in this genre, with some freakish guitar work and nearly supernatural ability on the drums. Honestly, even if you don't plan on buying the album for some reason, you at least owe it to yourself to listen to this song. The breakdown around 4 minutes that caps off the song is simply orgasmic, once again weaving in that ominous desert sound.

As if the repeated gushing has not given it away, I really enjoy this album. Find it and enjoy. It's a shame that the band split up, but at least they left us with this along with another good effort in 2002's Grime unlike some of those wonderful cock teasing one-and-done death metal bands. Demilich and Repugnant, I'm looking at you.

Verdict: Epic Win [9/10] (impossible tortured shapes in uncanny theatric vigor)

http://www.myspace.com/iniquitydk

Demilich - Nespithe (1993)

Although little-known by the newer generations of metal fans, Finland's Demilich put out one album in their tragically short career: Nespithe. It is a wonderful, bizarre journey of (from what I can tell, at least) completely unique death metal. Highly technical and yet schizophrenic, dissonant riffs wind convoluted patterns around some fantastic work behind the drum kit.

Production wise it is not a crystal clear studio job most tech death is adorned in today, but a raw and dense production that fits the metaphysical horror theme perfectly. The guitars ooze darkness and cosmic tyranny, the mostly unintelligible throaty vocals sound like something heard at a twisted ritual of servants of the Great Old Ones. Although it's hard to believe, apparently no effects whatsoever were used to create them.

The sheer brilliance of Demilich shows through not only in the instrumentation but the album's concept. The lyrics are relatively simplistic but well done, each song an exploration of some twisted reality or unexplained cosmic mishap, with some gore sprinkled in here and there for good measure.

Also, as if I needed to even mention it, song titles like "The Planet That Once Used to Absorb Flesh in Order to Achieve Divinity and Immortality (Suffocated to the Flesh That It Desired...)" are fried fucking gold. I give it my highest recommendation, so check this album out if you haven't, and enjoy. If you have already, we should be friends. To be perfectly frank, I've never heard a tech death album this original or atmospheric. A must listen!

Oh, and did I mention all of their material is available for free on their website?

Highlights: When the Sun Drank the Weight of Water, The Echo (Replacement), (Within) The Chamber of Whispering Eyes

Verdict: Epic Win [10/10] (your screaming won't stop until your mouth has been teleported thoroughly)

http://www.anentity.com/demilich/