UK band SUBVERSION, although not known to me previously, appears to have made quite the impact with their debut album “Lest We Forget” back in 2010. I understand that line-up alterations and other facets of life have seen to it that the band never quite managed to build upon that initial wave of favorable impressions. Five years later they have now returned with a new album called “Animi” through RogueRecords America, and most likely with a desire to be able to continue the promising start they had back in 2010.
As far as musical style goes, this is a band that I’d personally describe as exploring one of the more extreme varieties of metal. This description does come from a guy who flavored his journey from youth to adulthood with the classic works of bands like Iron Maiden and Metallica though, so my perception of extreme my be somewhat different from what is the norm these days I guess. I’m still flabbergasted by the fact that Black Sabbath by many are regarded as a classic rock act rather than a heavy metal band these days, to put it that way.
Still, there are undeniable extreme facets to this music, even by the standards of today. The hoarse, almost shouted growls that dominate the vocals aspect and the machine-like bursts by the drums and the tight, compact guitar riffs hammering in compact bursts both details I suspect are still regarded as elements of an extreme musical style. That the guitar riffs in particular have a tendency to venture out in frantic, quirky runs and otherwise have more of a rhythm than melody impact are perhaps both reasons for why the band have chosen to describe themselves as tech metal, at least that seems logical to my mind. That they have tendencies towards what I believe is called djent these days, at least on some occasions, is probably a detail that merits a mention too.
But there’s a bit more to this band than tight, stringent extreme metal tendencies. They do have a vocalist with more of a regular, powerful and melodic delivery too, and while his talents are explored in a fairly predictable manner, taking the lead whenever the theme transforms into a more melody based orientation as well as used to contrast the rougher dominating growls, it is still a neat effect. Perhaps a tad cliched at times, but as we’re dealing with metal that isn’t likely to be a cause of concern. I do have a strong affection for metal myself, but even I have to acknowledge that certain parts of the metal environment does exist within a time capsule that was set up 30 years ago and just about closed for all new entries at that point in time.
A more contemporary aspect of Subversion’s material is the use of electronic effects, as subtle dramatic effects distorting vocals and instruments as well as for subtly flavoring the soundscapes crafted with a more delicate touch. Orchestrated keyboard arrangements are fairly liberally used throughout too, most commonly alongside more melody based guitar constructions to create majestic soundscapes. I fondly recall Dream Theater as one of the first bands to develop that effect, and while it has since developed the main ingredients are the same.
More delicate keyboard textures and frail, light toned piano notes also adds a gentler, light toned and fairly often cold dimension to these otherwise aggressive, dark and grimy excursions through hammering riffs machine gun style and primal growls. And while I may be mistaken in this, I do get the impression that some fluttering, delicate guitar details post rock style are used on occasion too, adding a post metal tinge to the style explored. It is a bit difficult to tell due to the intensity of the material on this album, but at least I thought I heard details of that kind alternating with the previously mentioned keyboard details.
At last it’s also worth noting that Subversion isn’t a relentless band. One addition to their compositions, which most likely will alienate as many as it will attract, is the inclusion of delicate, tranquil intermissions. Plucked guitars, frail wandering piano, fairly soft keyboard textures. Sometimes combining two or more of these, both with and without vocals of the melody oriented kind, primal growls or both combined. More often than not with the intense metal aspects then subtly or more dramatically invading these tranquil escapades and then taking the composition back to one of the more typical intense themes again.
All in all a solid production as far as I’m concerned. The band comes across as a tad to predictable and cliched for me to be able to see them able to launch a massive career based on this album alone, they won’t be able to cross genre boundaries and manage to popularize their style of music in the same manner as for instance Metallica did back in the day, at least in my opinion. But those with an interested in technical metal with a liberal amount of extreme features, paired off with delicate nuances and a sophisticated overall approach should take note of this band and this CD. A certain taste for djent, symphonic and post metal might be needed to fully comprehend the scope of their material, but an affection for intense, technical contemporary extreme metal is probably the only requirement as such.
My rating: 76/100
