(Psychoparalysis) is a Finnish Progressive Death Metal four piece that has only just recently formed, and been rather busy. Since coming together in 2009, the group appears to have remained with the same founding members, and issued two demo recordings that didn't seem to get much press, but what coverage they had spoke highly of the material. For a 2012 release, the group went back into the studio and recorded their third demo, Escalation, which captures three brand new songs from the group for a total of roughly eighteen minutes of Death Metal. But, is that enough, or is it too much?
And for a self-released effort, the audio of this demo is rather remarkable. It's clear the band put a good deal of funds into the studio to make this release stand out, and it shows. The whole tone of the album is simply bleak and despair ridden among heavy, crushing guitar riffs thanks to the lower tuning and blunt distortion, all capitalizing off the heavy bass performance that doesn't stand out on its own layer, but at the same time is more subtle in its foreground back-up performance. The guttural vocal performance manages to reach similar levels as all the guitars, coming through rather clear that you can make out what is being said, but at the same time feel intimidated by the more primal force behind them. There's also a nice bit of range that doesn't go off into typical shrieking or rasp territory, keeping this well within the traditional Death Metal boundaries. Add in the loud crashes of the cymbals, the natural mid-range snares, and the deep clicking of the bass kicks, and you have a punishing demo that just hammers away at the listener. Or, at least, has the potential to.
One thing to note about (Psychoparalysis) is that many places list the group as a Progressive Death Metal act. In some ways this is true, but on this release, not all the songs cater to that categorization. However, it doesn't really seem to matter since both end up being performed well. "The End Results in Violence" does show off the band's more Progressive touch a little more, and this is thanks largely to some of the more complex chords at the start, as well as the timing changes that can occur, taking the rather fast paced song into slower, cleaner territories where you might expect some clean singing despite the colder atmosphere of the song. Thankfully that doesn't actually happen. The band manages to really weave in and out of these changes nicely, used great transitions that make each and every part feel natural to the entire song. This same kind of fiery intensity is found on "Symbol fo Enslavement," closing out the demo nicely with sheer brutality and speed, though the Progressive elements seem to have been lost and succumb more to a straight-forward Death Metal sound that not only immediately has your head banging along, but is simply ruthless and uncompromising.
But while the faster intensity and intricate timing changes really make the aforementioned tracks well worth experiencing, despite the latter being a little less Progressive, they simply don't compare to the following track "Beyond Iris," which will engulf any listener with a blanket of epic dismal solidarity. This song starts off with a creepy, slower pace that does eventually pick up into more of a mid-tempo approach, but with that build comes a far more epic atmosphere as well. The grand performance and fantastic catchy lead chords administered throughout the song really send the listener off in a completely different direction, and the slower moment that ushers in a similar cold atmosphere that "The End Results in Violence" had does allow the guttural vocals to shine and show the lack of imperfections that the music may have been covering up. This section also feels natural to the song, and doesn't quite fit the more dynamic Progressive Death Metal mold as it does the more epic style of performing. The passion and talent of (Psychoparalysis) ends up being shown off nicely here, and immediately becomes the cornerstone track of the demo recording that will have listeners coming back time and time again, especially towards the end when that epic build returns and you immediately are swept over with the grand sensation of victory, but at a terrible, somber cost.
From start to finish, (Psychoparalysis) do a fantastic job at putting their best foot forward on Escalation. To be honest, there isn't a single moment here that really cries filler, repetition, or anything that could really be spoken down of. The moment this demo went in, the superb audio quality and tight, powerful performances with subtle Progressive Death Metal elements worked in came off as a labor of love to the style, and it clearly shows throughout the entire performance. This is exactly how a demo should sound, and any respectable fan of Death Metal should immediately stand up and take notice. (Psychoparalysis) is definitely a group to keep an eye on, as well as to add to your collection with this very demo recording. Hopefully this will be the last one, as Escalation shows a band that clearly is ready, and damn well should be signed.
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Digital review copy of this release provided by:
(Psychoparalysis). |
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