Antiverse (Under the Regolith)
Crank this to 8.7 of 11
Released: 2018
Genre: Death Metal
Sounds Like: Leeched, A Forest of Stars
Steady as she goes, the foursome hailing from Minneapolis Minnesota preach a fucking steady formula of crisp brooding metal. Unwavering in their focused format, Kirkwold and Skilldum deliver an impressive chemistry of harmonic fretwork. The band’s sophomore release moves in a positive direction providing a bit cleaner production and tighter sound. Under the Regolith engulfs the listener with a clear sense of powering forward, as the vocal performances embed more within the instruments than become a distraction which we greatly appreciate amongst the death metal setting. Touche to their brilliant selection of Adam Burke to do the art cover. Nightjar Illustration is one of our favorite album artists to walk this planet.
Track Listing:
1. Hallucigenia (5:42)
2. Crimson Codex (4:51)
3. Ghostwinds (5:26)
4. Black Waves of Sorcery (5:03)
5. Subject Six (6:38)
6. Under the Regolith (6:58)
7. Diaspora (2:32)
8. Derelicts (6:21)
9. Shunned House (6:57)
Standout Track:
"Shunned House" is a brilliant closing track that decompresses the listener from the tight focused first eight tracks. While we appreciated the consistent journey within the first eight tracks, "Shunned House" takes an impressive turn. The vocals shine even clearer and tempo changes cause form dramatic contrast and beauty. The track really makes you appreciate the talent these four have. They provide you a glimpse into their progressive metal tendencies that subtly eek out through the previous tracks.
Adult Beverage Pairing:
300 Mosaic IPA at 7% ABV. Minnesota based brewed as a one-off in celebration of the 300th batch at our original downtown Minneapolis brewery is built on a base of Pilsner malt and heavily hopped with Mosaic 300 is pure hop candy that blends well with the Antiverse aura.
ROTATION RECAP:
Vocal Performance
8.6 of 11
Captivation and Variety
8.4 of 11
Weight of the Heavy
9.1 out of 11
Fretwork Prowess
9.3 out of 11
Percussion Prowess
8.7 out of 11
Overall Album Flow
8.8 out of 11
Contrast
8.2 out of 11
Album Cover Aesthetics
9.2 out of 11
Production Value
8.6 out of 11
Band Members:
Bass: Jason Bauer
Guitars / vocals / keys: Matthew Kirkwold
Guitars / vocals: Carl Skildum
Drums: Mike Paradise
Final Thoughts:
There is a lot of crap death metal out there. Antiverse, however, resonate. They have a vision and concise well thought out sound. At first rotation you can feel the foursome’s chemistry and it only solidifies with each listen. Death metal fans that appreciate subtle progressive hints should definitely pick this one up to add to their heavy rotation.
Follow Antiverse: Bandcamp / Facebook
