MisericordiamThese guys are from Las Vegas, and what better place to come from if you are a death metal band, well with all the hookers and what have you. And yes I did say death metal, on the band's debut EP "A Thin Line Between Man And Machine" you could've easily considered them deathcore (which is one of the best genres, fuck all you haters) because the band would integrate some vein rupturing breakdowns into their furious technical assault. Well on this, their second EP, the band has dropped the core and have jumped head first into death metal.
This six song EP opens up with "The Need Not The Needless" which starts off with the bass dropping an open that's so low it would drop your grannies panties, this also gives the vocalist a chance to sustain his lows. For the next 2 minutes the band proceeds to rip your face off with nonstop riffing. The next song, "Sentience" gets started with a cool picking pattern until they burst into one of the slowest moments of the EP with a slight chug until they start to bring it back up to a breakneck speed, and all this in a mere 1:28. The third song "Subjugate" starts off with a riff that brings to mind Cephalic Carnage as the guitars seem to swirl around in dissonance. Soon then after the band proceeds to blast away like it's nobodies business only breaking the tempo temporarily to slow up for a brief second only to come back faster. It's crazy that this was the longest song of the bunch, clocking out at a mere 3:04. The next song "Insonmnia" makes me think a lot of Devourment (just without the long songs haha), especially with the opening riff that utilizes some dizzying picking patterns as the drummer lays down one the best blasts on the album. This song also has the only part that you could even consider a breakdown (but it's not, but it sure as hell makes me want to stab people in the face) and the riff that proceeds it is definitely a hardcore/death metal riff done to perfection. Such good stuff, and a nice mix up from the constant assault from the previous songs. The fifth song, "Primitive Thinking For Alternative Living" starts off similarly to the opening track and then the bass gets a little cessation in tonal activity from the other guys in the band to display it's hellishly low tuning, these guys are either in B or A. Sadly all good things must come to end but the band closes with a bang with the song "Double Penetrated Debate". The song just jumps right into it, no fucking around and just constantly beating on the listeners already limp body, this song may just be the most unrelenting of the bunch, I mean there is absolutely no breaks whatsoever, it's almost straight grindcore.
Most people can't stand them or are completely impartial but I love lows, I just can't get enough of them and this guy can fucking bellow his ass off. It's amazing that he is able to keep pace with the music while shifting lows, which is anywhere from mid lows to subterrain low. He also does throw in some shrieks here and there to mix things up a bit.
Now you'd think you would have some lyrics about anal electrocution, fucking vaginas with knives or even stomping new born fetuses out of existence but that's not the case. The lyrics are as socially conscious and intelligent as any band in any genre. "Subjugate" is about the addiction the common person has to porno and what it does to society, this is the one song I'll have to politely disagree with because I looooove porno. "Sentience" is about how if human beings do not start to engage in more learning and thinking then the "future is apprehensible". "The Need Not The Needless" is an intelligent decry of how people have been turned into zombies by prescribed drugs, the 9-5 and the shallowness of contemporary society. "Insomnia" is about how the government uses fear to keep its people under control. "Primitive Thinking For Alternative Living" is about how since the dawn of man, man has believed hate, fear, and violence are the only ways to survive, this creed has been followed to present day, "books have been replaced with bombs". "Double Penetrated Debate" is the stance the vocalist takes, he isn't pro-choice nor pro-life. The one line really struck a chord with me, "Abandoned children left in mass graves that have turned into permanent orphanages." As the song says, "When is it okay to dictate when someone lives and someone dies."
I don't think you can record any album any heavier than this, it is maxed out to the fullest. The bass tone sounds like an 8.0 earthquake. The guitars are heavy as shit without becoming too muddy or unrecognizable. The drums sound fantastic, the snare has the patent death metal pop to it and the double bass pounds. Fantastic job on the vocals, they have just the slightest reverb and the little drop out at the end of the last track was awesome.
One of the best things about deathmetal is the logos, they're just awesome. And this one has to be one of the hardest logos to decipher. The black and blood red layout looks really good. The booklet is three panels and displays the lyrics in white over a background, which makes for an easy read.
Rating: 4.75/5
Songs Worthy of Replay: Insomnia and Double Penetrated Debate
Synopsis: Buy this (preferably from the label or the band or even from HC4EverDistro.com if you like deathcore, deathmetal, metal whatever, the shit is top quality. Check out the band's Myspace for some tracks. Be sure to hit up the fine label that released this: Twelve Gauge Records