Buried Inside "Chronoclast: Selected Essays on Time-Reckoning and Auto-Cannibalism" CD
[Relapse]
Fuck. This is an amazing fucking disc. This is the third full-length from these Canadians, though like many it's my first exposure to them, which is a shame in a way... because I wish I had been following them for years already! Expect 40 minutes of punishing metallic hardcore comparable to a blend of commonly bonded acts like Neurosis, Isis, Burst, and Tantrum, to name but a few noteworthy companions to this style of material. The record was written as one complete piece, here divided into 10 tracks that sort of cover two segments of five - each starting with an introductory piece and containing four different conceptual representation of time, reflecting the concept of the album. Amongst the material are tons of shifts from sinister atmospheric passages using clean guitars and a distinct bass presence to frantically picked chords that are faster and backed by far more frenzied drum work that lays down shitloads of fills all over the place, as well as absolutely crushing midpaced rhythms that are much chunkier and more tangible in level of dissonance (such influences are certainly my favorite aspects of the CD). The vocals are generally screamed with quite a bit of vitriol, occasionally taken over by lower growls for added variety. Oddly enough the instrumental "Introduction" is one of the most powerful segments, building very slowly with incredibly sinister chords and great drumming into the explosive "Time as Ideology". The melodic bass runs and clean guitars that lead off "Time as Imperialism" are just fucking awesome, making for one of the strongest tracks that represents their range of dynamics impeccably well; while "Reintroduction" (one of a few instrumental pieces) makes use of cello and violin in a rather avant-garde sounding framework that acts as a nice segue midway through the disc. "Time as Surrogate Religion" and "Time as Resistance" are among the longer passages and have more of a consistently pounding tempo with some persistent rhythmic repetition that really works well (even behind some of the noisiest guitar work herein during the latter). My only complaint from a writing standpoint is that I think the band too often falls back on the more abrasive chords that are picked faster and higher up on the neck, as most of that stuff is not only less emotional, but more typical and uninteresting, so... even though they use the stuff well (and the excellent bass performance really colors those chords superbly), it still tires me out during the entirety of the listen. The recording was handled by Matt Bayles and is definitely one of his strongest offerings in recent times. I've always been a fan of his studio work, but this is the first thing I've heard in some time that truly benefits from his style. The rhythm section is forcefully warm and natural with a nice snap to the snare, the bass parts are really thick and just audible enough to stand out from the guitars (in large part due to the fact that they work together rather than doubling one another), the vocals are on the grating side in texture but keep things under control perfectly, and the guitars are somewhat similar - keeping an acerbic edge and letting the rhythm section handle its end rather than trying to be too massively heavy on their own. Plus the layout on this thing is absolutely awesome, in my opinion the best looking release that Relapse has ever put forth to date. Everything is consistent in appearance with excellent photography, atmospheric colors, and lots of subtle layering of diagrams and textures for added effect. There's also a shitload of text, but everything is well presented - and with a matte finish no less. Included amongst the lyrics are tons of quotes from both fiction and nonfiction works that all relate to the concepts of the record, which deal with time - more specifically as stated, "...how time is perceived, controlled, exploited, manipulated, institutionalized, and internalized...", with many of the messages taking the form of socio-political commentary within the larger scheme of this massive topic. "Make way for the experience economy, make way for the access economy, make way for the new time-currency, welcome it all like the coming of Rome. Something is provided for all so that none may escape. Spatial gives way to the temporal so that none may escape. Value is wrought in the abstract..." Very fucking nice. Clearly this band is highly intelligent and driven to add just the right amount of creativity to their work to make themselves stand out. This is one of the best things Relapse has released in awhile. Sadly I doubt that Buried Inside will be the priority that Mastodon and The Dillinger Escape Plan are, but they would deserve it, so I hope they acquire some damn well justified recognition off of this one. I'm disappointed that I didn't find out about them in their pre-Relapse days, but there's no doubt that the jump to Relapse will benefit them for sure. Check this out. I'm impressed, and I'll put money on them growing forward from here. (8/10)
Running time - 39:59, Tracks: 10
[Notable tracks: Introduction, Time as Ideology, Time as Surrogate Religion, Time as Imperialism, Time as Resistance]
Relapse Records - http://www.relapse.com

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