Artist: Fallujah
Title: Leper Colony
Type: EP
Label: Grindhouse Music

These Americans started life as a political death metal band, for whatever “politics” or other stuff they are into who knows, I don’t care about that sort of thing, but rest assured they are now into Satan and Darkness, oh how things can change! Now concentrating their efforts with this EP, its certainly one for deathcore fans out there. Whilst being very technical in its approach from the start, the drumming production sounds a little muddy, gruff vocals overcoming the boredom of the opening instrumental ‘Impending Incarnation’.

Thankfully, things improve with ‘Ancient Dialectic’, the vocals can be a little annoying at times, musically, plenty of breakdown and jump around moments, but little to detract from a sound that is very samey within the genre. The faster moments are those better executed, with some sweeps and riffs for the guitars, and for the drums a lesson in footwear abuse. There are a few other ideas hanging around too, loose harmonics and almost Isis sounding strange melodies, its gets all the demons out. At over 6 minutes, this track just gets boring, lots of ideas, but all mashed together. Breakdowns galore greet you in ‘Infernal Majesty’, even if some are almost a sludgy low-end doom in rendition, again, not quite there yet as the vocals are just lost, growling in their own non-deciphering tones. The remainder of the EP continues it’s dull sludgy-come-death core until the title track is revealed. Now what the hell is going on here, this is very much a black metal tune (‘Leper Colony’). This is actually the standout track of this EP, shame it goes downhill mid-section with the predictable deathcore breakdown. I thought it had promise. Whilst this EP will appeal to deathcore fans, I just found this one a little dull to be honest. One standout tune out of six wash-over-me ones. I would like to hear better drum sounds on future releases, too ‘Click-click-clinical’, but this could be the way they have been “processed” in the studio.

This is an EP full of ideas, but one for true fans of this genre only.

http://www.myspace.com/fallujahbayarea
http://www.myspace.com/grindhouseaustria

Paul Maddison

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