Review Summary: Spitfire have designed an excellent journey that, if you are willing to commit, will leave its mark on you for some time to come.
Misanthropic. Sinister. Ominous.
Listeners expecting to be greeted with a warm smile and pleasantries should look elsewhere, as this is not a welcoming experience. While it is not uncommon for bands to play around with dissonance and unconventional song structures, rarely is the end product so crafted as to be intentionally discomforting. With
Cult Fiction, Virginia-based
Spitfire largely succeeds in creating a lingering sense of uneasiness that remains with those who decide to brave its dark depths. Even the album's cover art likewise serves to bolster the incessantly gloomy atmosphere so as to ensure that, bar momentary reprieve on instrumental "Apnea 1", there is no light to be found here, no glimmer of hope to grasp.
The release alternates between two main speeds: chaotic and despondent. The former is brisk, violent, and visceral, while the latter moments are eerie, quiet, and suspenseful. Vocalist Jon Spencer brings a level of energy and aggression reminiscent of early
Dillinger Escape Plan or
Converge, his relentless screams dripping with abject hatred and disgust. Opener "Arrhythmia Drift" wouldn't sound out of place on DEP's seminal
Calculating Infinity, with the guitars and drums pairing alongside the vocals in similarly tense fashion in what is also a technically exceptional effort. Standout "Chemo Therapist" begins with a haunting drone, launching into a tremendous behemoth of a riff that soon links up with a particularly vicious, feverish Spencer in simply one of the best examples of what the metalcore genre has to offer when performed to its potential.
While the album does unfortunately start to drag somewhat in its second act, the front-loaded barrage, including the fantastic "Crossed" with its Converge-esque stop/start guitar work, more than compensates for the brief dip in quality. Spitfire have designed an excellent journey that, if you are willing to commit, will leave its mark on you for some time to come. Hopefully you won't mind the scars.
