Hey there tech fiends, it's that time of the week again. Before we dive into today's focus, here's the usual weekly reminder that if you're looking for even more sick bands, all prior editions of this series can be perused here.
I'm not going to lie, like a lot of people knee-deep in this scene of super shredders and neck-breaking headbanging fans, the loss of Unique Leader architect and Deeds of Flesh guitarist/vocalist Erik Lindmark was a hard thing for many of us to swallow. Not just for the music and legacy alone, but, for all the bands he let flourish through his label, many of which followed in his footsteps musically.
With the labels current roster, I think few if any embody the legacy and advanced musicality of Deeds of Flesh as well as fellow California-based technical brutal death metal act Continuum. We've got the early stream of their second album, Designed Obsolescence for you today ahead of its release this Friday, February 22nd through Unique Leader Records. You can check it out below immediately, or, read a bit further to learn more about the band and the release if you so wish.
For those new to the band, Continuum plays a lighting fast soul devouring style of technical brutal death metal that feels right at home in the California tech-death scene heavily inspired by Suffocation, Deeds of Flesh, Decrepit Birth, and so forth. What sets them apart is not only how long all of the top-notch musicians involved here have been playing this kind of music in numerous high profile bands, but also the group's progressive death metal leanings that call to mind Decrepit Birth a lot of times. Like their last album, The Hypothesis, Continuum further play to their strengths by offering up a lean no filler album experience built on compact songs from start to finish on Designed Obsolescence. There isn't a song here that cracks the five-minute mark and the total run time is a mere thirty-two minutes. To me, that's perfect for this kind of frenetic and intense tech-death, it never wears out its welcome as a result.
I asked the band if they would be willing to comment on Designed Obsolescence from their perspective as the artist and they told me that “We’re very excited to release our sophomore album for Unique Leader Records, I feel like we’ve progressed so much since our debut album and came to a perfect combination of precise technicality and a unique hook driven songwriting style that will only grow on the listener throughout repeat listens. I’m incredibly proud of “Designed Obsolescence” and wouldn’t change a single thing about it, we hope you enjoy it and we’re looking forward to hitting the road with these new songs, til next time.”
As much as I loved 2015's The Hypothesis, I think the group really took their sound to a new level here on Designed Obsolescence. You be the judge after hitting play below, and if you’re into it, orders in a variety of formats can be placed through the Unique Leader IndieMerch store, for the EU/UK crowd here and through the Unique Leader Bandcamp Page. Be sure to follow the group over on the Continuum Facebook Page.
