EP REVIEW: Elemental Binding – Crown Of Madness
From the cold Western climes of Canada’s British Columbia, dissonant death metal duo CROWN OF MADNESS re-emerge from their barrow to deliver a sorrowful shotgun blast in the shape of their new EP Elemental Binding. Their second release to date, following on from last year’s The Void, these four tracks offer our final taste of what they’re about before their upcoming full-length debut.
And what vocalist/guitarist Sunshine Schneider and drummer Connor Gordon are about is a devastating mix of classic death metal and modern technicality, all underpinning lyrical themes of death, vengeance and decomposition.
So far, so death metal. EP opener Immortal Eyes wastes no time in getting straight into the fast and furious riffage that overlays machine-gun-fire drumming. Schneider’s vocal performance is suitably intimidating and makes lines like “My addiction to death confirmed / When I watch the life leave their eyes” hit like a truck. A guest guitar solo from fellow B.C native Matt Pancoust (of thrash/groove metal outfit TRUENT) lends the track a more fantastical element that loiters somewhere around the realm of power metal, and adds yet more strings to CROWN OF MADNESS’ bow.
A Wrenching Nostalgia plumbs sludgier depths, sounding at times like CONJURER as much as it does GORGUTS. Double pedal mayhem erupts under scabrously heavy guitar lines, and the duo are off and running on a tight campaign of destruction that doesn’t outstay its welcome. But it’s the closing track Vile Sun that deserves the attention. An altogether different beast – from its major chord opening and wistful connecting passages, to its oddly heart-rending climax, this is CROWN OF MADNESS at their level best, and if this is a sign of things to come, then we are in for something special.
If there is one point of contention, it would be that lyrically, these four songs keep on returning to the same sort of area. While the themes are strong and clear, it does feel as though the same wordage and sentiment is used over and over again. Across a whole album, it might not be so noticeable, but in such a compact 14-minute package, it’s hard to ignore.
A small niggle though in a darkly glittering EP. The Canadian duo have plainly laid their cards on the table with Elemental Binding and right now, theirs is looking like a tough hand to beat. If CROWN OF MADNESS go all in, they could come out on top in a big way.
Rating: 8/10
Elemental Binding is set for release on February 23rd via self-release.
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