Album Reviews : Theories – Regression

Death grind is one of those genres in which fusion is done right, kind of like Gogeta. Instead of taking the mediocre aspects of the two genres and milking them for commercial success like most generic deathcore bands, death grind takes the most intense, uncompromising aspects of both and synthesizes them together into a cacophony of chaotic fury that leaves listener’s ears bleeding and their underpants soiled. This fusion done right is what makes albums like Theories’ Regression worth listening to.

Theories are relatively obscure in the scene, with the Seattle based band only recently signing with a major record label, and this is evident in their approach to the album. The production levels hold a DIY approach, taking this aspect of grindcore to heart, which is a double edged sword. While it succeeds in creating an unprocessed, honest aesthetic to the music, it also makes quite a lot of the guitar work indiscernible amongst the cavalcade of blast beats and screams. The bass is also nowhere to be found amongst the fray. This means that whatever technical prowess Theories may take from their death metal influences are somewhat lost upon the listener.

The musicality is more grind than death, with rapid but simple chord changes, high pitched, breathless shrieks, and unrelenting, hard hitting drumming that cements the album together. Every now and then the guitars become slightly more technical and thought out, creating some catchy riffs scattered throughout the album. Speed, obviously, is the main focus here, and is maintained at a consistent pace.

Highlights from the album are furious affairs like “Cycle of Decay,” “Bathing in Pigs Blood,” and “Landfill,” mixing death metal and grindcore riffs perfectly in the midst of enraged drumming and screaming. Among these offerings is also a slower, more dissonant track “Swimming in Mud,” which seeks to unhinge the listener and does so gleefully. My favourite track from the album would have to be “Hell in Her Eyes,” which is more a midtempo, well-structured, and despair-inducing death metal song that evoked images of ruined landscapes littered with charred corpses.

Regression left my neck sore and my temples pounding. For fans of Napalm Death, Aborted, and Pig Destroyer, this is a raw, uncompromising album worthy of your time.

Related Posts

• 

  Carcass – Despicable
• 

  “Throes of Joy in the Jaws of Defeatism” – Barney Greenway feature (Napalm Death)
• 

  King Parrot release new single “Nor Is Yours” featuring Phil Anselmo.
• 

  King Parrot unleash their new single “Banished, Flawed then Docile”.