Review Summary: Bold, Intense and Violent. Untitled by Five Pointe O is a gem of the metal genre. With vocals from rapping to screaming, the six-piece group deliver an all out dynamic record to please any metal fan.
The most unique metal album ever made. Untitled by Five Pointe O blends rapping, growls, clean vocals and screams onto heavy guitar riffs to create one of the most powerful metal albums ever.
I first found Five Pointe O when I heard the song Double X Minus, it was one of those moments I knew I had listened to something special. I immediately bought their CD Untitled, which ultimately was their only ever album release. From the first listen I was in awe. Every song is different, from the tribal sounding drumming in Purity 01 to the powerful screams throughout the song Untitled.
The album kicks off with Double X Minus which was the only song the band released from the album. Pure adrenaline runs through the song, right from the off, Struble roars a 'chakaka pow!' Sharon Grzelinski and Eric Wood both on guitar follow Strubles vocals through the whole song, making it catchy and intense. Double X Minus shows the all out talent Struble carries, drawn out vocals are his speciality. The drawn out vocals over power chords was something I would never imagined before, but Struble has it off to a tee.
Think they can't do better then a song like Double X Minus? Think again. Next up, King Of The Hill. Struble’s vocals carry the song, starting off with clean singing then 10 seconds later a blast of angry growls saying: "I’ve made nothing to something gripped gold 'til gravels redemption." The song continues with Strubles versatile singing mixed with fast guitar riffs. It's at the 3-minute mark when the song takes a change. The guitarists combine with drummer Tony Starcevich to create an awesome 30 seconds of 1 chord pounding.
If there’s one thing you learn from Untitled, that is guitarist and backing vocals supplier Eric Wood is one angry guy. Throughout the whole album Wood and Struble go full throttle on growls creating some epic moments in songs such as Freedom? and Breath Machine. The latter song sees both men going all out with back and forth screams and growls, Strubles screams and Woods growls create a blood pumping moment of madness with their chemistry being right on point. Wood is key on the whole album, his chemistry with Struble is something else and it’s another reason which makes you wonder why Roadrunner Records didn’t push this group.
Purity O1 is the fourth track on the album and to this day it stands as one of the best songs I’ve ever heard. Lyrically immaculate, even if at times the understanding of what Struble is saying can’t be worked out. Sometimes the beauty of understanding lyrics is just how you perceive them. During Purity O1 Struble preaches: “Eternal life will be released from its vile, where it lies somewhere in the middle east, next to a vial obtaining infinite death, those grey will see.” Aliens? God? Who knows, but its cool right?
Another stand out track on the album is Untitled. Strubles relentless screaming are not one for the faint hearted even if you think you are a true metal fan. Struble eerily screams: “In plain view there is no truth, just what you can see, your broken reality.” Untitled is yet another fast paced, loud and ferocious song, yet again displaying Strubles versatility in his vocals.
Scrolling through comments through various different websites, its easy to see that people were very fond of Five Pointe O. Untitled was just an 11 track CD which showed the incredible potential the six-piece group had. Intensity runs throughout the whole album except for the songs Sympathetic Climate Control and Syndrome Down which are still superb tracks in their own right. It’s irritating to think of the many awesome records they could have went on to make, but for now Untitled has its place as Five Pointe O’s singular masterpiece.
