Formed in 2014 New Jersey based Tech/ Avant-Garde Death Metallers Replicant have gently bubbled along. The name is familiar but I have to confess this is my first delving into their discography. However, being the Brutal Death nerd I am, I’m also a big fan of grabbing a NJ Tech Slam outfit and as such a New Jersey Death Metal sounds ideal to me. Infinite Mortality marks the bands all important third album and comes to us through Transcending Obscurity Records a label with a very keen ear for quality, so the hopes are high.
Wasting no time in getting into some Death Metal grit in Acid Mirror before giving off Portal levels of sheer chaos and hypnosis through brutality. The vocals crash in with a tone akin to a more barbaric early Gojira which is certainly a plus for me. The guitars, drums and general instrumentation remains Technical throughout but isn’t overbearing. More quality musicianship than fretboard sweeping showboating. Not that I’m against that kind of Death Metal either but this is certainly Tech for the true Death Metal enjoyer. The next song Shrine Of The Incomprehensible is very aptly titled. It shows off exactly what Replicant have to offer, and that is a massive mind expanding sound. There is certainly something to be said for this brand of Extreme Metal, it’s more than headbanging, thrashing, atypical fare. It’s sort of like a breed of total sonic torment, not ambient by any sense but quite the blistering form thereof. Sure there are big riffs and sections that you could mosh to but it’s more than that, it’s atmospheric above all and I think it shows a real talent. To pick each individual song apart also seems unacceptable, this is about the journey not singular elements, a masterful composition of metallic fine art. The vocals are something worth noting here, Reciprocal Abandonment sees further twists and turns. Often times these kind of bands can lay flat on the vocal range, remaining at a singular guttural tone, but here they morph and change to create a feeling all of themselves, becoming in part a type of instrument, which works fantastically with the bands Avant-Garde Death Metal approach.
To cross the bar is SCN9A, a truly ritualistic instrumental piece that serves a great purpose in retaining that sense of brooding atmosphere and anticipation. Pain Enduring sees us get right back into the Metal fray, massive total chaos swirls once again, cavernous and devastating. I guess that honestly this is kind of one of those albums you have to hear to believe. That sounds like I’m saying it’s the greatest Death Metal record ever or something, I don’t mean that, I mean it’s hard to put into words the kind of experience you might have with an album like this. That’s not to say that it isn’t top quality and genre spanning within the bracket of Death Metal. At points it sounds modern, sometimes OSDM, occasionally Blackened, there really is a lot going on, but not in a confused sense. Most striking of all this however would be that fact that it isn’t pretentious, honestly quite a feat when playing with experimental elements and a fine line to tread indeed. I do feel though that some Prog elements would be a benefit, closing song Planet Of Skin being over nine minutes is a total journey akin to Tardus Mortem and their excellent Armageddon record. The whole album does come across as a sole entity but longer songs make for bigger journeys, so more of that next time please.
I’m quite speechless really after that, a real album to knock you off your feet. Massive amounts of power and destruction, technicality and brutality, a great mixture. In my lead up to attending Fortress Fest I’ve been listening to Abyssal a fair bit and Replicant give me very similar vibes and I’m a big fan of it. There is a precise art in creating such heavy music that is still almost meditative at points. A good concluding statement would be that it’s like a solid wall of noise, and in the best possible way.
(9/10 George Caley)
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