ALBUM REVIEW: Dystopian Syndrome – Molten
The Bay Area of California as as synonymous with thrash metal as New York is for doughnuts, yellow taxis and coffee. Even now, forty years after the movement was born, the underground is continuing to produce quality bands at a sizeable rate; MOLTEN are the next to break out into the spotlight. Following completion of their 2019 eponymous EP, they went straight into work on their debut full-length with renowned metal producer Greg Wilkinson and the fruits of their burden, Dystopian Syndrome, is out now as an independent release.
After the foreboding build of introductory song Shadows In Quarantine, the album explodes into galloping riffs and guttural vocals with Virulence. At seven minutes long, this is not the most accessible or straightforward track in the world, but it rewards listeners with plenty of dark tones and NWOBHM-style dual guitar solos from the hands of Chris Corona and Gary Goudreau.
The military style drumming from Damon Lockaby on the title track underpins the song well, and Lockaby himself is easily the MVP across the record, with a sterling performance at every corner. Until now, MOLTEN have very much followed the blueprint for the more modern thrash style that began at the turn of the millennium with bands like EVILE, but Holy Macabre is the first instance where the throwback to the roots of not only the music, but their own predecessors is evident; that chorus could have been written by METALLICA at any point between 1983 and 1986 and nobody would have batted an eyelid.
As the album moves into Zombie’s Curse, the past and the present collide – Brandon Bristol‘s guttural vocals evoking thoughts of early MEGADETH while the band charge through the best song so far in a style not dissimilar to POWER TRIP. It’s not the strongest for long – subsequent track On Through Phlegethon tops it thanks to its fist pumping drive, founded in the combination of both Lockaby and bassist Herman Bandala, whose own talents are pushed to the fore here; his rumble at the beginning proving that you don’t always need to have downtuned guitars to convey a tone of evil and menace.
Penultimate track The Void is very reminiscent of AT THE GATES with its melody and distortion marrying beautifully with a cleaner middle and regular tempo changes, and that’s all before we get to Rising Embers, a ten minute leviathan to round things off in style. It’s almost split into two – the first half is MOLTEN doing everything they’ve done brilliant over the course of the album, finishing with a huge chord and powerful scream from Bristol. The second begins more serene: the guitars don’t scream and wail, instead floating and allowing for the calm in the eye of a hurricane, but the build to breakneck thrash isn’t far behind. The finish with first piano, then organ is a lovely touch as well – the former is emotional, allowing the listener to catch their breath, but the latter brings a sinister ending, almost a precursor to what MOLTEN are looking to achieve on future releases.
There’s a question banded around the internet that asks ‘Heard you like riffs?!’ and MOLTEN have answered that with an emphatic ‘Yep, fill your boots!’. As a full introduction to their metal goes, it certainly isn’t anything to turn up your nose at, and anyone with any sort of interest in thrash will find plenty to enjoy throughout the fifty minutes of aggression displayed here. Is it particularly ground-breaking? No it isn’t, but that’s not really the point at the moment. What is the point is for MOLTEN to get their names on the map, and that’s certainly been accomplished.
Rating: 7/10
Dystopian Syndrome is out now via self-release.
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