The Analyst, Summoning the Wretched
Taking a more metallic approach to death/metalcore, Indiana’s The Analyst combine their ferocious delivery with melodic, technical guitars and pummeling rhythms. With the likes of The Black Dahlia Murder at one end of the genre spectrum and the mosh heavy White Chapel at the other, The Analyst fit snugly right in the middle — branching out into both ends of the range.
Not relying on massive breakdowns to get their point across, the band focuses it’s efforts instead on slick guitars, smooth tempo transitions and solid song writing. Slicing away with the precision of a scalpel but the power of an axe, The Analyst have more than enough ferocity in their approach. Along with the technical guitars and crushing rhythms is a dual vocal attack that ranges from deep guttural growls to higher range accompanying screams. All of the band’s attributes give it a rich and layered sound.
Nitelife
A quick drum blast greets the listener a the start of the album. It’s quickly followed by a couple screams before the band settles into a pile-driving pace with blistering drums and slick riffs. Memorable hooks and machine gun blasts litter the opening track. The layered vocals make for a great dynamic, and don’t miss the lead after the one minute mark. This is definitely an impressive introduction to the band. There’s a small breakdown aroud the 3:15 point that’s a nice exclamation point on the track.
The Remnant
“The Remnant” opens up with some memorable riffing for the first 15 seconds before the band shifts into some technical drum blasts. After a brief silence the guys get into the meat of the track with driving riffs and thundering drums. Again the dual vocals really make this album something to listen to. There’s a nice explosion of activity at the two minute mark with beefy growls and rapid fire drums.
Allegiance
Maniacal drum work and evil guitars accompany a series of gnarly screams before the band settles into some churning rhythms. The higher end screams on this one have an animalist edge to them. There’s plenty of ferociousness throughout. The lead at the 1:18 mark is killer. It’s quickly followed by a sizable breakdown and layered growls.
The Black Gate
Another bit of evil and memorable riffing gets this one going as the pace increases to skull crushing levels. The deeper growls are run through a filter on a few lines, but it’s not overly done and fits the band’s sound nicely. There’s a solid lead at 2:20 that’s got a great vibe to it.
Inclusion: Body
Some impressive drum work and massive riffs start off “Inclusion: Body” as deep, guttural vocals come in. This one moves along at a pummeling pace with several tempo changes and layered growls. The guitar work at 1:20 adds a nice melodic feel to the site without getting sappy. It’s definitely a nice touch. I like how these guys have added melody to crushing metal without going all Black Dahlia Murder swedish on us.
Summoning the Wretched
The title track starts off with some ambient noise for the first 33 seconds before burly riffs and lots of double bass come in. This thing is head banging madness. There’s a nice groove flowing through this one, as well.
Throne of Phyrrus
“Throne of Phyrrus” starts with some complex riffing and creative drums. Early on, it’s got a nice mid-pace rhythm and a slightly darker sound before exploding with rapid fire drums. The interplay between vocalist seems to work even better on this one for some reason. The lead after the two minute mark is slick and has a bit of a Ralph Santolla feel to it.
Inhuman Existence
The final track is one powerful track with lots of catchy riffs and big blasts from the drums (some of the quicker rolls we’ve heard so far). I’m digging catchy song structure from the 1:45 mark to the lead at 2:15.
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Building off of standard death/metalcore, The Analyst stretch it into a more metallic and flowing brand all their own. The group successfully adds in moments of melodic, Swedish death metal inspired guitars, but don’t do so at the detriment of their music. Instead they temper it and integrate it into their own sound smoothly and to the benefit of the listener.
Favorite Tracks:
Pretty much all of them
Additional Notes:
N/A