Review Summary: Ungulates rising again
There’s this space in my mind that often feels…misplaced. A self-indulgent argument combating the very idea that I should go my own way
and conform to expectations to do the socially acceptable ‘right thing’. Life is both harder, and easier in following the principles of these ideals. The struggle it seems is perpetuating just which direction I should go while simultaneously doing both. Ugh. These days I try not to spend too much time inside my own head; it’s busy there. There’s no profound meaning to be found, nor are there simple answers to be found in blank staring at a wall while my thought processors run a few parallel marathons. Do the right thing. Be a good person. Play the new Brain Stem album to
nullify a few brain cells.
That’s just it right there. I wasn’t looking for death metal’s next transcendental, super progressive, avant, mind-boggling addition to the world of vegan core metal. I wanted something with a bit of grit, up-tempo and good enough to chase those inward thoughts away. Enter
Nullified, a dystopian, sci-fi adventure from Canada’s Brain Stem. That was promising enough for me. I mean, if death-heads can re-run Cannibal Corpse tracks about chainsaw ***
ing and bloody ejaculations surely a run through basically any other concept
would work given the right technical ability and high gain amps. “Intergalactic Cattle” is that statement. Jessy Leduc’s vocal snarl rips well above the album’s mix as riffs crunch in time. There’s groove here—headbanging motifs for the cattle in question. It’s just not at all inspiring considering the endless talent being released within this fabled genre every single year. That sounds harsh. Yet, it’s not nearly the dissenting statement it appears to be.
Nullified’s early tracks simply carve out a caveman’s portion of listenable, enjoyable, albeit same soundscapes that prevent Brain Stem from truly articulating an amazing individual voice.
Looking further, “The Blood Witch” (and others) have a few choice moments, including Brad Fife’s always welcome bass noodles that often find themselves connecting one stanza to the next. “Monarch Rising” features some of the most relentless percussive chops this side of Imperial Triumphant, but Alex McIntosh’s drums are far from meeting the same graces as that comparison would suggest. It doesn’t take long before even
Nullified’s later tracks sound
too familiar under the Brain Stem frame.
Perhaps Brain Stem’s
Nullified is a nod to a genre consumed by both amazing genre-bending acts and a sea of monotony. The track titles themselves (“Intergalactic Cattle”, “Algorithmic Obsoletion”, “Devoid of Life”, “Mirrorborn”) could be a loose metaphor for this exact process of thought. Fans have become so jaded in looking for the next big thing and getting there first that simple enjoyable moments are often shanked into umbrella descriptions of derivative blandness.
Nullified is enjoyable to a fault. Brain Stem
can write death metal songs, but if you’re looking for more than a typical tech-death album you might as well hop on the next spaceship to the
intergalactic cattle farm.
