Review Summary: What.the.
This review could start off with any number of tropes. It could rehash the observation that the bar for progressive and technical metal has been raised continuously over the past years up to the point where you wonder how many notches upwards are yet to follow before the trend starts reversing but anyway, not today with THIS release, and what with those legacy bands stepping up their game, etcetera. Or it could kick off with a good old proverb like, say, 'Good things come to those who wait'. Now you and I know proverbs have a way of being completely unreliable, but this one might just fit our particular case and work to round up the intro in the process. So there: the wait has been long, it is over, something good has come. We finally have a new Toxik full-length to discuss, let's not waste more of our precious time.
Any elaborate analysis runs the risk of playing down the merits of the album, so I hope to keep this as succinct as possible. In short:
Dis Morta is GOOD, and it really does pick up where
Think This left off - in my modest opinion at least. From the ominous recitation of Deuteronomy verses in the title track up to the last seconds of closer 'Judas', the objective clearly is to take no prisoners and leave no survivors. This is progressive technical thrash extravaganza, lush and layered, baroque and ingenious, all in being recognizably Toxik, signalling that the band in its present crystallized setup (3.0? 4.0?) is ready to take on the rest of the third millennium - while many of us did not think that such a development was even possible.
Technical skill is not an issue, nor are song writing or lyrical proficiency. James DeMaria (drums) and Shane Boulos (bass) effortlessly manage a massive rhythm section, new voice Ron Iglesias has the range to comfortably fit in both Mike Sanders and Charles Sabin with extra breathing space left (a bit of hyperbole never hurt anyone); whereas original mastermind and guitar wizard Josh Christian continues to do what he knows best: combining, blending and layering genres, scales, themes, melodies, harmonies so as to craft songs that are at once musical stories, societal pamphlets and technical joyrides, each with their own gist and standout moments.
Standout moments? I am baffled, for instance, by the dramatic effect injected by the Christmas carol style vocal bridge into the otherwise epic and monumental build-up of title track 'Dis Morta'; and similarly by how the oriental lullaby-themed bridge in 'Feeding Frenzy' lifts up the track to a new level of shred. I am charmed by the beautiful melody and harmonies of 'Chasing Mercury'. I am puzzled by how 'Hyper Reality' - most likely my favourite here, if pressed - oozes with progressive alienation and intrigue. I am mesmerized by the vertiginous, spiralling design of 'Creating The Abyss'. I am blown away by the guitar lead intro to 'Power' and the uncanny speeds of 'Straight Razor' (still not sure what hit me there). And I am as endeared by the Queen-style piano intro to 'Devil In The Mirror' as I am awestruck by that track's riff attack and solo section.
All this being said, my personal rating of the album is based most of all on its superb replay value as a whole rather than as a collection of tracks that may all be memorable in themselves. As for production: for an album written as densely as this, the mix is accordingly rich and full; to my ears at least, all the instruments stand out nicely. Guitar nerds and metalheads will have a field day with this record, regardless. And then we haven't even started talking lyrical content.
