Piss Vortex

Piss Vortex

Written by: AP on 02/01/2015 18:16:21

With a moniker drawn from a (hopefully) imaginary phenomenon I, for one, would not like to embroiled in, a debut album pressed on piss yellow vinyl, and songs that upon inspection rarely stretch much beyond the 2-minute mark , Copenhagen newcomers Piss Vortex leave little doubt as to where their musical interests lie. Spectacular grindcore is the description they themselves ascribe to it, yet with the presence of former The Psyke Project guitarist Christian Bonnesen in the line-up, you just know the reality is deeper than that.

Having said that, expecting beautifully layered, progressive soundscapes like those found on many of the ‘Project’s efforts would be a gross mistake, as the only semblance of Bonnesen’s previous work here exists in the raw and dirty tone he utilises for his instrument, and to some extent his choice of chords. Beginning with the eviscerating “Detrimentalist”, this self-titled creation plays like a blender full of cutlery; noisy, cacophonous and steaming with ferocity. There's a touch of Dillinger Escape Plan-esque abrasiveness to the opener, yet as the album progresses, that influence becomes but a minor touch to the 'Vortex's maelstrom of grind.

You'll barely have inhaled and exhaled before "Voice of the Worthless" and "Devouring Intent" appear in the rear view mirror amidst a cloud of settling metallic dust. Only when "Inoperable" rolls in is there a chance of grasping some semblance of structure in this stuff, the song combining the hanging primal chugs that always marked the most violent passages in The Psyke Project's music, with blasts of Pyrrhon style grindcore/hardcore fusionism. In general, it is upon these longer songs that the lasting value of "Piss Vortex" rests; they're far from accessible, yet the likes of "Liar(s)" and "Hollow Success" expose a less chaotic, more coherent facet to the music that, at times, reminds me of the pre-"Alaska" era of Between the Buried and Me, sometimes of the gruelling hardcore of Nails, and in places such as "Beaten Womb" even of The Chariot.

Not surprisingly, I have little affinity for the sub 1-minute eruptions of mechanical rage that are also present here. No doubt such tracks will make for excellent, pit inducing picks in the live setting, but my personal tastes do dictate there be more in a song than, for example, is the case with "Filth" and "Those Who Labor" clocking in at 0:29 and 0:45 seconds of schizoid chaos. It is thus the concluding "Our Maker's Invisible Hand" (a whopping 05:06 minutes in length) which emerges as the highlight here, its mixing of the full breadth of Piss Vortex's influences resulting in a varied, textured and elaborate song which, if embraced to a greater degree on coming efforts, bodes well for the future of Piss Vortex.

This self-titled disc bears the hallmark of a talented band, and in the end it cannot be denied that my own disinterest in grindcore clouds my judgment somewhat. Fans of that genre, however, will find plenty to rave about here, and thankfully for the rest of us, Piss Vortex have understood to pepper their music with enough stylistic range to keep the less seasoned connoisseurs of this type of metal satisfied as well.

7

Download: Inoperable, Liar(s), Beaten Womb, Our Maker's Invisible Hand
For the fans of: (old) Between the Buried and Me, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Nails, Pyrrhon
Listen: Facebook

Release date 03.11.2014
Indisciplinarian

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