REVIEW: Infernal Murder – Reborn (EP/2013)
Artist: Infernal Murder
Album: Reborn (EP)
Ah, the ocean. When is the last time you really stopped and thought about just how marvelous it is? It covers well over 70% of the earth’s surface, and, while we as humans depend on it to sustain our way of life, we really know very little about it. Odd, isn’t it? Especially when one considers the incredible variety of life which it houses—especially those creatures which lurk in its very depths. Animals like the anglerfish; fearsome and able to withstand pressures that humans ought not even think about braving. Like the gruesome, treacherous anglerfish, Reborn, the debut EP by Mexican deathcore act Infernal Murder is a monster that ought not be trifled with. A stunning combination of intense, fast-paced technicality and low, bludgeoning beatdown, Reborn is an EP which will chew you up, spit you out and leave you to die—while allowing you to enjoy every agonizing second.
First and foremost, Reborn showcases its penchant for speedy, razor-sharp riffs and twisting, labyrinthine technicality. “Nightmare” is home to a series of riffs that combine grinding, crunchy grooves and furiously-fretted shredding that makes mince meat out of the listener’s mind. Likewise, “Reverie” opens with a similar style of riff-driven insanity, which includes just enough of an atmospheric element to give it an almost dream-like feel—a dream which rapidly turns into a nightmare for the listener, as synthesizer and electronic elements alike kick in and rend them limb from limb. While the guitar drags the listener kicking and screaming deep below the crushing tidal wave that is Infernal Murder’s Reborn, the bass and drums beat at them during every second of their tedious descent. The album’s title track, “Reborn,” features a climactic use of absolutely pummeling kick drum and low, groovy bass which hits the listener so hard it barely leaves them with any bones left intact. The further beneath the waves Reborn drags the listener, the murkier things get, and the pressure begins to wear and tear on the listener’s body.
Infernal Murder’s lacerating technicality might cut gashes and pierce holes in the listener’s flesh, but it’s the low-down and dirty heaviness which makes Reborn a truly fearsome release. Deep, powerhouse chugs roam like enormous blue whales throughout the underwater seascape which Infernal Murder craft. Reborn is packed with breakdowns that smashalmost like the Titanic hitting an iceberg. When these dreadfully heavy and vicious monoliths of anger strike, they leave no survivors. This is, in part, due to how well the vocals compliment the low-and-slow nature of Infernal Murder’s penchant for the grizzly and heavy. “Psychotic Behavior,” especially, opens with a tantrum of hard-hitting heaviness laced with venomous growls and low, guttural bellows which smash the listeners bones and busts open their organs. While the low, heavy gutturals might seem over-the-top to some, the truth is that they are a perfect fit for the EP. The constant battery of bitter, hate-filled lyrics and low, misanthropic vocals makes the heavy sections that much heavier and provides a low end to keep the album’s symphonic elements from getting overly ethereal. In this manner, even Reborn’s lighter sections still linger in the crushing, murky depths of deathcore mastery.
Reborn hardly slows down for its entire duration: it is an EP comprised of lacerating, quick-hitting technicality or booming, thunderous heaviness. Between the two, there is hardly any form of rest or reprieve for the listener. No salvation to be found, no break from Infernal Murder’s unique, crushing pressure. The only slight break—the ebb to the unstoppable tidal wave Infernal Murder attack the listener with—is found in “Psychotic Behavior,” in the form of a graceful, jazz-influence segment. Unlike anything else on the release, this section is the only patch smooth sailing for klicks, and it is wonderfully done. Much like the song title suggests, it behaves as predictably as the mind of a psychopath; which is to say, it is completely unwarranted and impossible to follow. In this way, with little twists, turns and flairs for the dramatic, Infernal Murder prevent monotony from foiling the beast that is Reborn.
Dragged below the water, being crushed by torr after torr of limitless oceanic heaviness. This is Infernal Murder’s Reborn. Cutting the listener open with furious segments of technicality only to let the salt water pour in and inflame their wounds with the slow burn of relentless heaviness, Infernal Murder is the agony and anguish of drowning—an agony and anguish the listener will cherish play after play.
9.5/10
For Fans Of: Whitechapel, Oceano, Nexilva, Thy Art is Murder
By: Connor Welsh
