Review Summary: Arturo Parra comes into his own.
Arturo Parra is a solo musician out of Dallas, TX. Upon listening to his first EP (
Onism) I immediately went for
Necroverse, confident I was on to something special. Right from its start it’s made clear that for his sophomore release, Arturo Parra didn’t go for a drastically different soundscape that of
Onism, carrying the brand of progressive metal and metalcore of the likes of Erra and Substructure from his debut. Where
Necroverse stands a full step above its predecessor is in how much more of display of raw artistry it is. Where
Onism felt more open and conventionally structured, as if almost written with vocals in mind,
Necroverse sees Arturo Parra push his boundaries as a focused songwriter and guitar player, as well as a producer.
Going into specifics, I found the “Re:” tracks to display particularly interesting guitar work, especially “Hybrid Eclipse”, with Arturo nodding at 00’s melodic metalcore throughout these impeccably structured tracks where spacy synths and frantic riffs take turns at keeping you engaged. The way Arturo employs these synths is an absolute highlight of
Necroverse, with the homonym tracks acting as a masterclass of how to make your music sound downright sci-fi while keeping its status of a skillfully written metal song intact. The continuous growth of Arturo Parra as a producer is to be credited for this aspect and, on that note, I’ll say that as of
Necroverse, Arturo Parra is clearly comfortable mixing and mastering music at a professional level – and writing it too. From “Nebula Collapse”, a technical juggernaut of a track that rightfully earns its spot on
Necroverse as the opener, to the explosive, breakdown strong “Necroverse pt.2” which finishes it, nothing seems to have been included just for the heck of it. Every synth piece and riff feel like they were scrutinized and every time the songs slow down or pick up pace the writing feels confident. Everything feels in place. For that and every other aforementioned aspect surrounding this EP, had someone thrown it at me without my prior knowledge of the author, I would’ve easily guessed it was a side project by one of the big boys in the scene. In fact, I’ll say that as of
Necroverse, Arturo Parra is a much more fledged out and original artist than some of the bigger names in the modern progressive metal, djent and metalcore scenes.
Necroverse is Arturo Parra coming into his own as a multi-instrumentalist and, no less, as a music producer. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a sponsor or three picking him up soon, nor would I be surprised to see him go all the way into that branch and make a career as a music producer. All in all, Arturo Parra is definitely a name you should remember and
Necroverse, an album you shouldn’t miss.
