Ever since I met these, then kids back in 2008 at a Summer Slaughter (or maybe Sounds of the Underground?) show, I’ve enjoyed watching them stick out the genre saturation of proggy deathcore djent whatever ever core that blew up in the mid 00s (“Abstract Art” from the debut The New Reign is still cool as fuck over 10 years later) . They and cousin act  After the Burial with 5-6 releases each have weathered the storm, evolved, and are still releasing good stuff, and album (EP?) number 5 continues the trend.

At 8 songs and barely 20 minutes, there’s not a lot to sink your teeth into, but even with the brevity, it shows the band in top form and developing their growing, melodic, soaring prowess blended with the choppy, djenty, proggy backbone they have honed over the years.

The short (3 minutes or so) direct songs all feature ample keyboards and stuttering riffs, but there are some of the band’s best moments of tier career are contained on this short little release. Standouts include “Under the Gun”, with one of the more pleasantly additive, pleasing little synth lines on the genre of recent memory and closer “One Without the Other” with a cool catchy chorus and melody, that sees the band creep even closer to Between the Buried and Me realms.

In between, is the expected stuttering, clinical staccato riffs, robotic synths growls, screams and raspy croons. There’s a little more aggression for the more blasting “Disconnectome”, and more burly “Analog in the Cells” and the first single “Silence the Echo” also has some really cool more dramatic, experimental moments.

Its a shame the release is so short (a second album is also planned for later this year), but it is quality over quantity, even though I’d love to hear these guys dabble in sprawling 10-minute numbers.

[Visit the band's website]

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