The Pitch: Big, dumb, downtempo deathcore just the way you like it from Rotterdam's Distant via Unique Leader Records. FFO: Black Tongue, Traitors, Vulvodynia
What I Like: That just about sums it up, actually. If you are part of the cult-level following of Traitors, then this is just what the doctor ordered. All of the usual ingredients are here: super-slowmo breakdowns, brees, lumbering grooves... death metal for T Rexes. T Rex's? T Rexi? Dinosaurs. You f#$king get what I'm saying. Honestly, it's hard for me to say what about Tyrannotophia caught my ear since this isn't my usual bag and there's SO much of it out there. But yeah, that's the best compliment I can probably give Distant is that they have a little special something in the sauce that just worked for me. They also do a good job on the faster bits as with "The Enslavement."
Critiques: It's a perfectly serviceable album, but one relatively devoid of any surprises or major personality. They've built a decent enough foundation with this album, but from here they are going to have to really step things up to hold my interest.
The Verdict: The thing about this particular subgenre is that it feels like it doesn't give you much room to go anywhere. Downtempo definitely turned some heads when the first few bands starting doing their thing, but since then it's just been a slew of complete carbon copies. I think that Distant have the capability to step out from the shadow, but it's going to take some major innovation on their part.
Flight's Fav's: Zeroten, Abhorrence, The Enslavement
- Review by FlightOfIcarus
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