Nucleust
Fractured Equilibrium
Ufo Publicity
Out Now
Review by Rod Whitfield
This Perth based four piece’s debut EP is well named. Its staccato, off kilter rhythms are indeed so neck snapping that they are likely to put you off your balance. This is a very brutal, gritty take on the djent progressive metal genre.
In fact, these guys may even have invented metal’s 873rd sub-genre, groove based djent-thrash? The traditionalists of course will be up in arms to hear that, all red faced and frothing at the mouth, howling “you can’t do that! It doesn’t sound like Slayer!”, but as metal grows, progresses and expands, new sounds and hybrids are being developed and introduced all the time. So you can either open your mind, jump on board and partake of the incredible musical goodies that are coming along all the time, or you can stay stuck in the past and keep wearing out your three decade old copy of Reign in Blood.
The vocals have more of a thrashy howl to them, as opposed to the higher pitched scream and clean vocal trade-off that many djent/prog bands feature, and the production aesthetic is more raw, real and gutsy, along the lines of a more thrash orientated production. On the prog side of things, the music is complex, with a lot of odd-time grooves and more complicated arrangements. They have managed to make the riffs sound like more elaborate thrash riffs too. These guys combine the best elements of two seemingly disparate worlds within the metal spectrum, and they do it rather well.
The songs are solid too, with just a wee semblance of melody peeking through brutality on occasion, providing very welcome dynamics amid the sonic firestorm. Displayed to best effect on the excellent Dazzle the Shadow Priest. Whisper is pretty damn awesome too.
This EP shows great promise, and I await with anticipation for what these guys come up with next.
