ALBUM REVIEW: The Nothing That Is – Fit For An Autopsy
FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY are an absolute powerhouse in deathcore. Their experienced 16 year career shows this but it was with 2019’s sublime The Sea Of Tragic Beasts, and subsequent follow-up – 2022’s Oh What The Future Holds – saw the band’s stock explode, landing numerous tours, festival appearances and admiration in heavy music circles. Now, intending to strike whilst the iron is hot, comes The Nothing That Is and it’s another solid outing from the deathcore heavyweights.
The band’s ascendancy to the upper echelons of deathcore is not based solely on their ability to bludgeon with brutal breakdowns, although the booming album opener Hostage would say to the contrary as a bombardment of thumping riffs blown the barn doors from its hinges. There is a razor-sharp precision, and flashes of eerie melody, that transcends the confinement of the stereotypical deathcore tropes to deliver a listening experience that is truly worthwhile. And The Nothing That Is is reflective of the band’s ability to write top tier metal. The aforementioned Hostage gives a first glimpse of this as tastefully used cleans cut through the thumping rhythm with aplomb, kickstarting the album with a bang rather than a whimper.
Elsewhere, the band continue to impress. Spoils Of The Horde boasts some slick riffage and a delicately precise solo from three-pronged guitar trio Will Putney, Pat Sheridan and Tim Howley whilst Joe Badolato effectively rides the wave with his visceral growls sounding weighty, particularly in the closing moments of the track. Further highlights include the dizzying Savior Of None / Ashes Of All which provides a sublime aural representation of a cyclone, whilst Red Horizon‘s thick grooves and dense tones takes a more calculated approach in its delivery and it benefits massively with the riffs hitting with the weight of a battering ram.
With its runtime weighing in at just over 43 minutes, The Nothing That Is feels like it has its fingers on the pulse, with the band keeping the listener engaged throughout. The title track successfully injects a shot of adrenaline to ignite the album’s second-half with arguably one of the finest songs on the entire record, whilst the likes of Lower Purpose‘s snappy riffs and wicked bite leaves a lasting mark, and the exquisitely well-balanced The Silver Sun, that swings between melancholic melody to vicious deathcore with the utmost ease, closes the album in arguably one of the band’s biggest musical triumphs.
At this point, FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY are very much akin to a well-oiled machine. They have found have found their formula and have slowly tinkered away, refining it to the juggernaut it is today. Building upon the foundations of their previous two full-length records, on album number seven, FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY deliver yet another solid slab of stellar deathcore, reinforcing their status as one of the genre’s genuine heavyweights.
Rating: 8/10
The Nothing That Is is out now via Nuclear Blast Records.
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