Car Bomb "s/t" CD
[self-released]
This incredibly brief demo offers up three tracks of rhythmic metal very much in the vein of Meshuggah, so expect lots of midpaced chunkiness and staccato picking patterns with stuttered percussive beats and barked vocal shouts. "His Eyes" is the longest and most developed track, offering tons of changes with a few chaotic and noisy explosions and some harsh screaming at times, which I don't enjoy as much as the thick rhythms and constant shifts between fucked up time signatures (but nothing too crazy, it's all graspable); while "Solid Grey" is only two minutes and throws in a bit more dissonance, not to mention some singing vocals that are pretty effective. Barring the fact that it feels almost too succinct this is the most promising track herein by far, as the riffs are fucking great and flow very nicely, with the vocal variety adding a well needed change of pace. "Rid", the opener, is a mere 37 seconds and has more of a frantic Mr. Bungle meets The Dillinger Escape Plan attack of near grinding ferocity - quite different from the other two songs. The production's not bad for a simple demo, but it does need a little work. It's crisp, and the drums sound pretty good, but it is thin, and there's a lack of bass for sure. I feel like the vocals are a little too far up front, and the guitar tone has an unnatural bite to it that, while not bad, at least needs more bass guitar to fill the gaps. They'll also need to tweak the clarity to make sure everything still has its proper place, but they're on the right track. The CD comes in a slim cardboard slipcase that's all done in black and white with minimal content. So... there's not much to go on, but it does at least look decent for what it is. Not bad. They need to keep pushing at it, and the bulk of the material's not totally original, but they're reaching for a good point with this stuff, and "Solid Grey" is very close. I'll be curious to hear more... (6/10)
Running time - 6:51, Tracks: 3
[Notable tracks: Solid Grey]
Car Bomb - http://www.carbomb.us

This review has been displayed 1523 times.