Backlashed bass
-- Perpetual --
03/07/2022
Stijn Daneels
Album genres:
■ | Groove metal |
■ | Thrash Metal |
Album artists:
■ | Alan Durajewski | Vocals |
■ | Mateusz Gorczynski | Guitars, backing vocals |
■ | Mateusz Fryda | Guitars |
■ | Jakub Milszewski | Bass, backing vocals |
■ | Lukasz Raczkowski | Drums |
Review
written by David Hardy.
Some thrash
& groove metal from Poland, sent to us by our friends from Against PR. The
band is quite young, being formed a mere six years ago and debuting in 2018 with
an EP called “Blackening The Future” and now coming with a successor EP called “Backlash.”
There isn’t much else I can tell here, so let’s jump straight into this!
THE DISCOVERY
The “Backlash”
EP begins with its title track and that title track starts with an eerie, dark
ambient intro, which is a rare occurrence for a “simple” EP. After that little intro
sample the “Backlash” track unleashes some very badass and heavy guitar riffs with
a voice that totally fits the EP’s groove & thrash metal style. Overall, I
feel Perpetual is inspired by The Haunted and it’s quite nice. It groove and
thrash but a little more ambitiously made thanks to the melodic and technical
touches (particularly in the guitar tapping department). I do reproach one element
of this song: the lack of bass prominence in the mix. You really have to go and
actively listen for the basslines in order to take the measure of their
importance! It's a pity because if the bass would’ve been a little put more
forward at the level of equalization and in the layers, the “Backlash” track as
a whole would’ve felt deeper and more powerful. Still, it’s a good track that
makes you want to go further through this EP.
The next
track is called "(Not) Importial words" and features backing vocals
that give this song a solid boost and which remind me of Rage against the
Machine! Other than that, the song feels pure groove with some guitar solos
that feel more inspired compared to the earlier track but still not enough to convince
me in its composition.
"Fourth
Dimension" is a another nice track but this time I’ve felt that the toms
of drummer Lukasz are too light, especially in the 2:00 part. This lack of
impactful drum mixing causes a real lack of depth and cause this track to lose
a lot of its power. But still, it peps rather well. Next up is the single “Incapacitated”
one of the best songs on the EP (and also the shortest) and it’s a song that glues
very well despite its traditional side. Once again it’s a little flat in the
mix again it lacks a little air and depth and the bass is low to medium. But it’s
an overall great song that doesn’t overstay its welcome and ticks off most of
the groove & thrash metal boxes.
Then comes “The
Unknown” the second standout track on Perpetual’s “Backlash” EP. It starts off
softly and gains in power gradually and organically. The chosen audio effects
are good, the vocals are impactful and the song’s final guitar solo is sweet.
The final track, “Parallel Reality” closes the EP in very nicely. "Parallel
Reality" closes in a very nice way the EP, it's a good and energetic tune
with some solid thrashing aggression, effective backing & multi-vocals and
finally some crisp basslines.
THE CONCLUSION
So, is this
the EP of the century: no. Would I go on vacation with it? Maybe! Because in
the end this “Backlash” EP is still a solid effort despite Perpetual having had
several lineup changes between this release and its predecessor. There’s some
well-written groove & thrash here, with some interesting reflecting in the
terms of the singing. Let's say it's nice, but, I think Perpetual can give us
something even more interesting if they employ a little more creativity, some
more melodic and academic solos, and putting the bass more in the foreground.
While lacking
in originality and missing some serious bass and drum emphasis in the mix,
Perpetual’s new EP is an enjoyable piece of groove & thrash metal. If you enjoy
those subgenres or the likes of The Haunted or Soulfly you may want to give
this one a try.
THE SCORE
7/10