REVIEW: Parasitic Ejaculation – Isolation [2017]
Artist: Parasitic Ejaculation
Album: Isolation
When I think of isolation, the first thing that comes to mind is the emotional connotations behind the word—Loss, sorrow, loneliness and gloom. More often than not, to be isolated implies being cut off from the world around you not by choice or happenstance, but by a cause, be it heartbreak, the loss of a love one—you get the picture. There’s an impetus.
But there is another implication behind isolation—one whose impetus is infection or disease. Synonymous with quarantine.
That is where slamming death metal band Parasitic Ejaculation draw their name for their 2017 full-length release—not from emotional deprivation but rather disease-laden depravity. Dripping with putrid, punishing and powerful slams separated by scathing riffs and sinister grooves, Isolation is a wonderfully mixed display of destructive perfection—standing in a class that, as the name might imply, is all on its own.
Instrumentally, Parasitic Ejaculation are as ruthless and pulverizing as the name might imply—full of breakneck drumming and bold, blistering riffs that leave even veteran slamophiliacs as little more than piles of bloody, pulpy mush. Drummer Donovan Dettle is nothing short of pure devastation behind his kit—as once “Ingesting Disease” kicks off, his feet and hands don’t stop flying. Songs like “Ingesting Disease” feature a bouncy, somewhat subdued introductory groove—a similar pattern that shows up during the peppy and catchy introduction to “Global Decimation,” which sees Dettle doing more than just slam’s standard salvo of skin-shredding blast beats and stupidly fast footwork (although there are plenty of both of those in songs like “Forsaken Abomination”). Here, Dettle actually works intimately with bassist Josh Schwartz to figuratively “up” the groove and bounce factor that pervades Isolation—as the duo do more than just create a thick and gritty low end. Schwartz’s work on the first seconds of “Ingesting Disease,” and indeed throughout the entirety of the album is surprisingly audible, as the bass tone remains snappy and punchy, roaring almost alongside the chunky, filthy fretwork of guitarists Michael Mostachetti and Parker McClellan. Mostachetti and McClellan might not change the game when it comes to slamming death metal’s instrumental dynamic (Dettle gets close during the percussively intense “Mutilation”), but they create catchy, crunchy riffs and slams with more than enough pinch harmonics and dissonant, booming chugs to appeal to fans of deathcore’s early years and contemporary lovers of brutal death metal alike. The duo groove, riff and chug their way through the listener’s skull in blunt-force-trauma like fashion—such that by the time “Cognitive Dissonance” strikes, the listener probably won’t have much cognitive ability left.
Just as McClellan and Mostachetti have masters brutal slamming death’s voracious fretwork, frontman Johnathan Neel is adept—indeed second to none—at grisly, pants-shittingly ruthless guttural bellows. I honestly hesitate to try and pick one song where Neel’s voice is at its most intense, but songs like “Ingesting Disease,” “Mutilation” or “Global Decimation”—the latter featuring Trevor Strnad who needs little other introduction—see him at his most diverse, adding raw mid-range screams and barks into the mix to keep the listener from getting overwhelmed by his persistent use of fearsome and furious low, ungodly growls. Neel furthermore deserves praise on his endurance, as his voice fills much of just about every track—doing so without getting too overbearing—and not sacrificing intensity or power at any point.
Isolation is bouncier and catchier than many of its peers, and likely more accessible due to some songs featuring conventional breakdowns alongside prolapse-inducing slams and bone-grinding grooves. Even as Parasitic Ejaculation do little to push the boundaries of brutal death metal (which, mind you, is tough to do given the genre’s extreme nature), the crisp and clean production throughout Isolation makes it inherently more tolerable than the sloppier efforts by the band’s peers. Additionally, the group do a good job of making the tracks slightly different, narrowly dodging monotony to a point where listeners get bored. In short, the group hold little back while still leaving plenty of room for creativity and catchiness; which means Isolation is sure to find good company in the underground heavy music community.
8.5/10
For Fans Of: Gamma Sector, Ingested, Hanni Kohl, Dying Fetus
By: Connor Welsh
