(Andy Synn gets his Death Metal on with the new album from Ectovoid, out now on Everlasting Spew)
Playing “Extreme Metal” – whatever your chosen flavour may be – is, as we all know, serious business.
That being said, it’s not a crime to have some fun while you’re doing it, and Birmingham, Alabamaniacs Ectovoid – whose line-up comprises members of serious death-dealers like Metaphobic, Father Befouled, and Seraphic Entombment – sound like they’re having an absolute blast (pun only marginally intended) on their recently-released third album, In Unreality’s Coffin.
That’s not to say that Ectovoid don’t treat what they do seriously – the merciless intensity of tracks like “Collapsing Spiritual Nebula” and “Irradiated Self” (not to mention the visceral vocalisations of lines like “Entering the gulf / A bleeding miasma / Timeless rotting self / Collapsing nebula“) are more than proof of that – it’s more that it feels like, now that they’re firmly established and onto their third full-length album, they’ve been able to cut loose a little more this time around.
Part of the reason for this is that whereas their previous works leaned heavily towards the Incantation/Autopsy side of things – and, to be clear, there’s still a hefty amount of influence from both bands here, especially during the likes of “Intrusive Illusions” and the unexpectedly melodic, yet unrepentantly malevolent, “Formless Seeking Form” – there seems to have been a shift towards favouring the tortured riff-barrage of Cannibal Corpse (“Dissonance Corporeum”) and the gut-wrenching ground ‘n’ pound of Immolation (with outstanding, seven minute closer “In Anguished Levitation” being fully capable of going toe-to-toe with some of the very best from Dolan and co.) as part of the group’s careful fine-tuning of their sound.
But whether they’re channelling their inner Incantation, Immolation, or some other inspiration entirely (and, let’s be clear, when it comes to Death Metal the Ectovoid crew are consumnate students of the game), it’s the plethora of nasty riffs, gnarly grooves, and irresistibly catchy hooks – with a song like “Erroneous Birth” being a prime example of how the group integrate all three elements, while still maintaining an unapologetically raw and primal vibe – scattered liberally throughout these nine tracks which makes this album so much… and, yes, I’m going to say it again… fun to listen to.
Again, that’s not to say it’s any sort of lightweight or throwaway release – indeed, there’s something hideously compelling about raspy, guttural utterances like “Reclusively pursuing self reflection / Trying in vain to fill a lasting void / Drawn to the light of hateful introspection / Languishing, a false remnant of ego broken” which provide a tantalising glimpse into the album’s darker, and more philosophical, depths – it’s simply a way of acknowledging that there’s little to no filler on this absolutele killer of an album.