...SIŁA I PIĘKNO MUZYKI TKWIĄ W JEJ RÓŻNORODNOŚCI


..::OPIS::..

Produkt najwyższej jakości!
Miażdżące riffy przeplatane wspaniałymi melodiami, a całość opakowana technicznym kunsztem!
Jeden z najlepszych w 2021 roku!

FA


Six years is a long time to wait. When a band takes this long in between records, sometimes they spend it slowly honing their sound and improving everything they can. Sometimes they simply lose interest and are never the same. Based on last year’s EP, Alustrium still have plenty of interest in their music. The six year wait paid off, and now I have the task of putting how good their new release sounds into words.

Alustrium are a US-based technical death metal band currently signed to Unique Leader Records. Of major technical death metal influences, their sound leans towards the clean virtuosic end of the genre, similar to The Faceless or Obscura. Alustrium’s specific brand of technical death metal involves stuffing everything they can into a record, and then cramming two more full tracks complete with excessive solos on top. Even though this description raises every red flag of “soulless technical death metal” that can be found, Alustrium cram emotional earnestness and breathing room in their records along with everything else, so concerned potential listeners should safely proceed without anxiety.

A Monument To Silence improves on A Tunnel To Eden (The band’s excellent 2015 release) in two large ways. First, A Monument To Silence flows as well as any technical death metal album I’ve ever heard. A Tunnel To Eden didn’t exactly fail in this regard, but Alustrium obviously used the six years between albums to great benefit. Everything feels completely natural. Verses and solos transition seamlessly to rather insane choruses and to each other, and I found it easy to lose myself in the ambience of this record.

Let’s talk about those choruses more. Another improvement from A Tunnel To Eden that Alustrium offer the listener is simple, pure catchiness. I have now had one moment from “The Hollow Ache” stuck in my head for over a month now. Again, A Tunnel To Eden was a great record and did extremely well in this regard. With A Monument To Silence, Alustrium have only improved.

Against the rest of the technical death metal field, Alustrium don’t challenge the genre’s greats by creating an enticing atmosphere (although they do that as well), or by drowning the listener in dissonance, or by pushing the boundaries of what people conceive as death metal. Instead, they simply write and perform death metal as well as anyone. This is evident in the amazing choruses and flow of A Monument To Silence, but also in the little things. In the slight pauses before the chorus hits in “Join the Dead.” In the wavering tone of some of the slower guitar solos. A Monument To Silence does nothing new or unique, instead Alustrium crafted every moment to near perfection.

My issues with this record feel like they could be someone else’s favorite part. The production feels overly harsh at times, but that only highlights Alustrium’s heaviness and technicality. This record is over an hour long, but I would miss any song that got cut and appreciate how much of a good thing Alustrium are giving their audience here. There is a bizarre drum solo moment at the end of “Join the Dead” that almost went very poorly, but instead creates a nice diversion. “Dreamless Sleep” is an unnecessary interlude, but I find it quite pleasant and a good leadup to the next track. Nothing I could throw at A Monument To Silence lessens how good this record sounds.

I haven’t even mentioned how well this works as a concept album, or the return of previous moments in the amazing final track. I could go on for a long time, but words can’t do this album justice. With A Monument To Silence, Alustrium are no longer in the realm of bands like Beyond Creation or Inferi (both of whom I highly recommend as well). Their new peers are bands like Necrophagist and Death. A Monument To Silence is the best album of the year so far, and the best new release I’ve ever reviewed. I hope to listen to it for a long time.

Nathan


Philadelphia’s progressive tech death architects Alustrium smashed out an album for the ages with their 2015 opus A Tunnel to Eden. The sophomore LP presented a kaleidoscopic, grand in scale masterwork of progressive and technical death metal, featuring serious instrumental and compositional chops, while possessing tons of heart and style. Despite being a little too bloated and ambitious for its own good, the pros far outweighed the miniscule cons to deliver a knockout punch. Punctuated by 2020’s strong Insurmountable EP, it has been a long time between drinks on the full-length recording front. Curiously slipping under the radar, Alustrium’s third album, A Monument to Silence is now upon us.

“The Hollow Ache” sets the bar high from the get-go, mutating from gently hypnotic beginnings and whispered vocals into a beastly tune, immediately showcasing Alustrium’s firm grasp of smart songwriting dynamics and brain melting technicality, underpinned by dexterous melodic currents, insidious hooks, and proggy twists. All the trademark Alustrium ingredients are in place, yet A Monument to Silence shows a band not content to coast or create a half-baked sequel to a blockbuster original. A Monument to Silence maintains the band’s ambitious streak, while carving out its own chunk of character. It has a notably darker, edgier tone than its predecessor, almost blackened at times, while the relentless barrage of scattershot percussion, lightning fretwork, jacked speed, and dueling vocals, leaning heavily on the high and low trade-off variants, courses energy, fury, and aggression into the album’s veins.

Deft arrangements and progressive tints do not detract from the fact these cats bring the heaviness tenfold. The album has serious fucking teeth, counteracting the complexity and prog foundations. Take the frenetic tradeoffs and rugged grooves at the midpoint of “Hunted,” or the damaging breakdown rearing up on “Join the Dead” for examples of Alustrium’s heavier capabilities. Alustrium balance each component expertly into a cohesive whole. The proggified tech is never used as a crutch, while creating memorable songs full of unpredictable twists, character and emotional pull is the band’s bread and butter. Cranking the momentum beyond the high quality early throes, back to back bangers, “The Accuser” and “The Plea,” are like two sinister peas conspiring in a pod, flexing Alustrium’s progressive muscle and multifaceted dynamics; tinkering with tricky rhythmic patterns, experimental vocal interplay, and complex structures, while dispensing power packed riffs, flashy solos, and seething grooves. The former even sets off some Tool vibes during its early passages.

“Deliverance of the Damned” recalls flashes of Necrophagist and a beefed up The Black Dahlia Murder during its thrashy, tech-death passages. Album pacing is solid, culminating in the epic title track, containing nifty links to the album opener. I often bitch about metal albums that drag past their welcome, or marble otherwise strong material with unnecessary fat and gristle. However A Monument to Silence does not fall into the category of overcooked ideas stuffed into a too small casing. Yeah if I was being a bastard I could scrape the barrel for reasons and shave a couple of minutes, but it would be like separating layers of skin with a scalpel. Alustrium’s willingness to push the envelope and incorporate surprising turns maintains intrigue. Performances are expectedly outstanding, especially from livewire guitar combo of Mike DeMaria and Chris Kelly (also on shared vocals). The axe wielding duo’s playing is at once adventurous, intricate, extravagant, and still metal as fuck, while Kevin Corkran is phenomenal on the skins, propelling each song with his flowing style and creative, high energy chops. The material screams for a richer, more dynamic master, while the second half of the album ever so slightly dips in quality, but these are relatively minor gripes in the big scheme of things

Alustrium is a class act and A Monument to Silence consolidates their position at the forefront of the modern prog and tech death scenes. A Tunnel to Eden took a while to fully absorb and appreciate, growing in stature over time, so I can see A Monument to Silence following a similar path. Some may miss the overly hyperactive, playful qualities and flair of its predecessor, but I can not imagine most fans of Alustrium’s prior works being disappointed with what they have served up here. Intelligent, regal, blistering, brutal, and superbly composed, A Monument to Silence is must listen stuff for fans of prog and tech infused death.

Saunders



..::TRACK-LIST::..

1. This Hollow Ache 06:42
2. Join the Dead 06:09
3. Hunted 03:58
4. The Accuser 08:47
5. The Plea 07:26
6. Dreamless Sleep 01:05
7. Blood for Blood 04:32
8. Deliverance for the Damned 06:25
9. Worthless Offers 06:53
10. A Monument to Silence 10:39



..::OBSADA::..

Mike DeMaria - Guitars, Songwriting
Kevin Corkran - Drums
Kevin Penny - Bass, Songwriting (track 8)
Jerry Martin - Vocals (lead), Lyrics
Chris Kelly - Vocals, Songwriting (tracks 1-5, 7-10), Guitars



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