Origin

Entity

Written by: MST on 25/07/2011 20:36:33

More technical death metal is coming your way. This time the sonic punch to the head comes from the Americans in Origin and their fifth opus, "Entity". 2008 saw them releasing the monster called "Antithesis", which was damn close to being an equilibrium between speed, brutality and technicality. Since then, former Skinless vocalist Jason Keyser has replaced James Lee on vocals, but their vocal styles are very similar. Let's check out this new brutal tech-death album now, shall we?

The characteristics of Origin are unchanged on this new album; the riffs and basslines are fast and technical, the vocals often change back and forth between growls and screams, and the drumming laid down by John Longstreth is some of the fastest drumming you'll ever hear. No kidding. There's blastbeats, and then there's John Longstreth, and I wouldn't be surprised if some even found them too fast. For instance, in "Swarm" the blastbeats go on almost without interruptions, and then all of a sudden the speed is doubled and one's mind is instantly blown at the mere idea that such speeds are even possible. The double-bass pedals are almost never allowed to rest, and the time signatures are weird as fuck. But despite the similarities, "Entity" varies somewhat from the formula that "Antithesis" followed. Whereas the whole of "Antithesis" was incredibly fast and technical, "Entity" appears a tad more accessible. The unyielding brutality and mind-boggling technicality has been downtoned slightly to make room for more melody (yes, there's melody in brutal releases as this one) and variations in song structures. Whether that's a pro or a con depends completely on the individual listener. I, however, have to utter my humble opinion in this review and after a lot of listens I can't shake the feeling that "Entity" lacks the immense intensity that "Antithesis" had endless amounts of.

So there you have it. If you're expecting a new "Antithesis", this is not quite it. But as an individual album "Entity" has a lot to offer. Take "Banishing Illusion" for instance; it sounds like the bastard child of Origin and Napalm Death, combining the brutality and technicality of Origin with a very distinct grindcore vibe. I encourage everyone into brutality, immense speed and technicality to check "Entity" and its predecessor out.

Download: Swarm, Saliga, Banishing Illusion, Consequence Of Solution
For The Fans Of: Odious Mortem, Deeds of Flesh, Spawn of Possession
Listen: MySpace

Release date 10.06.2011
Nuclear Blast Records

Related Items | How we score?
Comments
comments powered by Disqus

Legal

© Copyright MMXXIV Rockfreaks.net.