Sound: For my second review, I thought I would pick another band for which there was no reviews for. A while ago, I stumbled band called Soreption, Who is another tech-death band who doesn't seem to break out of any common ground with other bands to make themselves stick out significantly. However, what they do offer is a slight sense of "flow", packaged with some level of intelligent sounding material. The only way to truly understand what I mean by that is to listen to the album. Of course, the musicianship is nothing short of fantastic. The guitarist shreds, of course, and I can definitely say I LOVE HIS TONE (definitely the strongpoint of the album); Drums are tight, blistering and help administer this flow I spoke of earlier. The bass is actually there (unlike most bands these days) and while it's another band with a low growl, the vocalist seems to add a lot of power into his voice to where he sounds along the lines of Malcolm Pugh and Christian Alkjghfh (that guy who was in Scar Symmetry, I can't remember his last name for the life of me). The sound, when it all comes together of course, is like mixing the technicality A Loathing Requiem (as I mentioned, Malcolm Pugh) with that unique prog sound and heaviness of Meshuggah. Other bands who would fit this style are Odious Mortem, ALR, and MAYBE Decapitated's "Organic Hallucinosis". Considering how much I love the slightly atypical TechDeath sound... 9. // 9
Lyrics and Singing: Dark, evil, poetic. Yep, it's Metal for sure. Some of the title tracks lyrics:
"As it became peacefully colder
All that was will never be
The warmth of the welcoming black
All that was will never be
I don't wanna be a part of this
Obnoxious decay
Begging for pain to heal the words
Of my acts, so repulsive and vile
So repulsive and vile"
Again, the lyrics are dark depressing and poetic. They aren't the most memorable word for word (for those who remember, I said the same about Decrepit Birth). So what makes the vocalist cool? His growl. There aren't a lot of bands who seem to have one similar to his (but there are, somewhere). They have the occasional overlaying (or gang vocals, as I see them be called a lot) which are cool because they are growls blended with slightly higher growls. 8 for being powerful, but not too original. // 8
Impression: If there was one band (I'm pretty sure this is their only released album, correct me if I'm wrong) which had to be picked as the representative for what Tech Death is turning into, this would be it in my opinion. Considering how I find the same problem with the majority of tech-death bands (which seems to be how varied amounts of material sounds the same), Soreption is a band which ALMOST breaks away from that by giving each song it's own personal kick. Some songs it's the leads, perfect example being the end of "Breeding Exile" (perfect amount of reverb slapped on it, to give it a flying feel). 2 of the songs have unique, uninstrumented intros, and others have that slow crushing riff I was talking about earlier. IS THIS ALBUM WORTH ANOTHER BUY? Come on, who are we kidding? Does anyone REALLY buy music anymore? But if I did, I would buy it once more. Any more would be just unnecessary. Favorite tracks: "Breeding Exile", "The Hypocrite Undying", "Deterioration Of Minds", and "March Of The Tyrants". Impression gets a 9, because I am really happy with this album, I am wondering if their next work will evolve in some way or another. I have high hopes for these guys.
Speaking of new albums, how's Necrophagist holding up? // 9
