Hey there tech fiends, it's that time of the week again. Before we dive into today's focus, here's the usual reminder that if you're looking for more sick music, all prior editions of this series can be perused here.
The multi-national dissonance focused technical death metal crew Nightmarer have been on my radar since 2016 when I helped premiere “Ceremony of Control” here at Metal Injection, an at-the-time unreleased song from the group’s two-song Chasm EP. Now the group is set to drop their debut album, Cacophony Of Terror, which carries over the song I premiered in 2016, but leaves out the other killer song released at that time, “Vessel of Nausea”.
Cacophony of Terror expertly builds upon the style present on 2016's Chasm EP, focusing on intense heaviness, well-written complex songs, and audible bass to set themselves apart aside from the recent wave of dissonance heavy Deathspell Omega-ish black metal inflected technical death metal acts. Cacophony of Terror is a bleak and crushing experience, one that reminds me of a mix between Gorguts, Coma Cluster Void, Imperial Triumphant, Ulcerate, and Ion Dissonance, with a bit of Hate Eternal and Immolation streak at times too. While an extreme emphasis on both heaviness and groove within this style is not new at this point, it is much rarer within the confines of how most band's play dissonant tech-death. For that very reason, Cacophony Of Terror sticks out as somewhat different from the pack. This album rips through and through, it’s the real deal performed with pained passion when it comes to horrific stomach-churning skronky fury that manages to hit home and strikes a real emotional chord. Driven by deathly howls amid the apocalyptic soundscapes, intense drumming akin to heavy machinery and rapid artillery fire, and further warped by maddening schizophrenic rhythms that lay waste to everything.
When listened to as a whole, Cacophony Of Terror definitely impresses me, often makes my jaw drop while it induces involuntary headbanging, but the lack of consistency led by the first three songs being to me, the three weakest on the album, and paling in comparison to the much stronger seven tracks that follow, leaves me wanting more at the beginning oftentimes when I spin this. That said, the more I’ve continued to spin the album, the more its stuck with me as a whole, so I feel safe in saying Cacophony Of Terror has real staying power as a release.
This isn't a flash in the pan, this is the first awakening of something monstrous and powerful given life through music. The album drops on March 23rd through the always excellent Season of Mist records. Four early singles have dropped to date, the two streaming on Bandcamp are embedded below with a second embed from Youtube for the group's recent double premiere of the last two song's, "Death" and "Swansong" not streaming on their Bandcamp yet. You can pre-order Nightmarer – Cacophony Of Terror through Bandcamp here and in a variety of options and bundles through the Season Of Mist site here. Be sure to follow the group moving forwards on the Nightmarer Facebook Page.
