Review Summary: Inciting pure, solid boredom.
Having seen Lody Kong, Incite and Soulfly all at the same gig, I can personally attest to the fact that all three bands share the same enthusiasm for knocking out the same violent groove thrash album after album, gig after gig, song after song. Yes, this album/tour/album/tour cycle does prove weary, but then again you'd think that for Incite in particular, who have existed for over a decade now and have released four albums, would have over time matured a little and have eschewed all the youthful mistakes every band makes when first getting together. Such is not the case with Incite's latest full-length effort,
Oppression, which flies by in what seems no time at all, but also doesn't offer anything truly memorable mere moments after the album has finished playing.
I'll be completely honest here, there isn't a whole lot to say about
Oppression that hasn't been said about Incite's previous three releases. As always, it starts out with the strongest songs and then falls completely flat because the band can't really bring themselves to inject any more vigour or fire into the songwriting process. I mean sure, "Lost Reality" and "Stagnant" are introduced via powerhouse groove-thrash riff work and the extra guest vocal effects (courtesy of All Hail the Yeti's Connor Garritty) on "Life's Disease" prove a positive boon, but aside from these few memorable moments,
Oppression serves its purpose as an exercise in merely adding another album to an already inconsistent discography. The album isn't bad, it's just average and gets doggedly tired as it "progresses". Richie Cavalera may well be the one focal point (as always, considering his family connections) but his rough 'n' ready vocal delivery falls flat by the first verse of second song "Lost Reality", and from the point onwards things take a downward sweep to pure boredom. Admittedly, the band do bring different influences to the table, though only within the confines of metallic sub-genres. Metalcore ("No Remorse"), groove-thrash ("Lost Reality", "Oppression") and nu-metal ("Stagnant") all play a vital part in the band's collective attempt at versatile songwriting, but it simply doesn't work when even the usually tight and solid instrumental performance sounds doggedly tired. This, in turn, reflects Cavalera's one-dimensional vocal work and by the end of
Oppression's 33-minute sluggish runtime, you'll likely be going back to Soulfly and Sepultura records in hope of a little more excitement to fill the rest of your day.
At this point in their career, Incite should really be attempting to overthrow the already condescending generics of groove metal, but as evident on
Oppression, it's almost like they don't try. The music here is mostly straightforward and to the point, and serves as an interesting introduction to the band's career should you wish to do so, but it fails to invigorate or
incite that mental circle pit at any given moment, choosing instead to go through the motions.
