GRAVEMIND-INTROSPHERE
Melbourne, Australia-based outfit Gravemind have after half a decade returned with their sophomore LP Introsphere, ten tracks of huge-sounding modern metalcore. Indeed, the first thing that jumps out at the listener is the massiveness of the production, which elevates the songs and adds further heft to the band’s already substantial heaviness. Scottie Simpson (Alpha Wolf, Polaris) is credited with the production and Jeff Dunne (Make Them Suffer, Knocked Loose) is credited with the mix and master. Credit the band for crafting a set of songs that belong elbow-to-elbow with any of the other A-listers in the genre.
The second, and related, thing that jumps out is that "modern" may not be the best descriptor, as the band’s sound really belongs with the cohort of metalcore acts whose music sounds like the soundtrack to some futuristic dystopia or other, reinforced by the Matrix-esque cover art, the Mick Gordon feature, and the electronic textures. While there is a growing swathe of the metalcore scene that’s embracing the rawness of the earlier days of the genre, for a band like Gravemind, incorporating these electronics, depending on their particular use case on this record, adds dynamism, emotionality, the sense of being in some robot-dominated future hellscape, and/or a more chaotic dimension to the songs.
As for some of the particular highlights, the chaotic hyper-futuristism of "Failstate" with Mick Gordon comes to mind, as does "True Life," which opens up with a little bit of a modernized For the Fallen Dreams vibe and features frequent forays into what is essentially deathcore. The breakdown about a third of the way through the track is particularly tasty. Album closer "Pranic Lift" spends roughly the first third of the track slowly winding up to the band’s delivery of its haymaker with an almost post-rock feel; after the dystopian djenting, we’re ultimately left sweating and exhausted as the final nasty breakdown serves as the exclamation mark to the proceedings. Overall, this is a record I’m positive will be readily embraced and praised by the scene.