Monuments - Gnosis (Album Review)
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Wednesday, 29 August 2012 |
Written by Ben Bland
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‘Djent’... that most troublesome of metal genre beasts. Easy to deride and hard to love it may often be but the technical skill involved makes up for that right? Wrong! There is nothing worse than a sea of bands essentially ripping off the style of a few innovators (Meshuggah, Textures, etc) with about as much desire to add new aspects as Oasis had to make a full-on avant-garde jazz record. Is such an opinion lazy? Undoubtedly, but that does not make it incorrect.
 What it does do, however, is overlook the fact that there are some bands playing the polyrhythmic Thordendal & Hagström loving style of metal with more than their own touch of personality. One such band appears to be Monuments, the brainchild of ex-Fellsilent guitarist John Browne. Although on the face of it there is little to separate them from the rest of the trend, they do have something special and that is what makes 'Gnosis' an essential listen for fans of progressive and technical metal.
It seems, from a cursory glance, that all the features of typical ‘djent’ are here and of course they are but there is something extra as well. A lot of it is down to vocalist Matt Rose. Unlike many of the anonymous voices that usually accompany this type of tech metal his is capable both of genuine soaring cleans and exceptionally powerful growls. Dare I say it, this is what ‘djent’ with emotion might just sound like. The riffs are still mechanical and ferocious, but the vocals are more than capable of communicating the meaning behind the songs. “Degenerate”, in particular, sees Rose bring a whole new level of real anger to the table. Perhaps more importantly he also carries the hooks of the songs (particularly the fantastic “Blue Sky Thinking”) in a way that does not sound overly saccharine coated.
Musically, Monuments are as type as their contemporaries, if a little bit more restrained. The only time they really seem more desperate to impress than to write good songs is on final track “Denial” which, with its cameo appearance by Periphery frontman Spencer Soleto, merely sounds like a very average Periphery track (i.e. big on technicality, low on interesting ideas). Thankfully, however, it is not indicative of the overall nature of this record. “Gnosis” is frequently interesting and imaginative, if occasionally a little one dimensional; but then, what records of this style are not? Furthermore, at only forty minutes in length, it is refreshing enough to keep you coming back for more.
“Gnosis” is out now via Century Media.
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