Me Infecto "Killing Ourselves Slowly" CD
[self-released]
Five tracks of fairly midpaced and melodic material from this unusual duo featuring simply bass, drums, and vocals. Seeing a duo credited with so few instruments and a group of fairly short songs, one would almost always start expecting something grinding or at least frantic/chaotic, but thankfully this is far more interesting, basically treating bass the way most bands treat guitars: As a lead instrument that creates thick riffs based around both chords and note-based runs, while the dense percussion bashes away alongside. They don't use much distortion on the bass either, just a little bit of fuzz around the edges at times. The vocals range from softly spoken/sung passages to growled shouts, most effectively changing up in the longer and more openly melodic "Destinations a Hoax". A lot of the bass parts definitely have a slightly slower math metal kind of vibe as far as being very rhythmic and spacious with winding transitions between riffs. The songs all flow together very nicely as well, almost like one large composition with a few dynamic shifts. You'd never really know that "In the Company of Whores" and "Peel Away" were separate songs were it not for the track separations though, as both take things a little quieter and softer at times, with very consistent vocal performances that jump quickly from faint singing to more aggressively textured yells (ala early Clutch or something of that nature). I like the recording as well. The drums sound perfect, nice and natural, punchy and warm, etc. The bass parts are layered for added thickness, and I like the tones, but I think there's a little something missing. Just barely. And sadly I can't place what I think it is (Maybe a little heavier distortion on some of the thicker bass parts?). The songs don't feel like they need guitars though, and that's great. This is definitely among the more successful bass/drum duos I've come across in my days. So they're on the right track regardless. The black and white layout keeps it simple with a few crisp medical diagrams and repeating images of flies alongside the brief lyrics, which are generally pretty cryptic. "Baggage of whores, Brought back like from war, Down in the trenches, Survival incentive, Losing momentum, Dying and sore, Dinosaur in the company of whores." I like this. I think they need to develop their sound just a little bit more to really let their talents come to fruition, but this is an unexpectedly intriguing little EP. I look forward to hearing more from these two. (7/10)
Running time - 11:35, Tracks: 5
[Notable tracks: Destinations a Hoax, Peel Away]
Me Infecto - http://www.meinfecto.com

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