Dissent

Wow. Just wow. Now I've been listening to a couple of splits with Misery Index that I've got from somewhere not so important, after listening to all their albums until Traitors, I've figured to have a go at other material and to compare. Should you have the same idea sometime, don't hesitate, since you'll always find the one gem or the other, ready and ripe for the taking. 2004's Dissent is one of those obscure masterpieces that one would normally not bother to get, instead going for the full releases. From a band that plays music without any compromise and straight balls-out death/grind there can be a certain turning point to lameness and blandness, or there can be Misery Index. This US act has always stayed true to their essence and roots and will always have that little special place in the scene. Great.

Dissent, disagreement or simply put, fed up with bullshit is the voice and ambience here on this little, thoroughly-assembled EP. Judging by the cover and lyrics, this is about violence, denial, social depravity, injustice, that sort of thing. Misery Index always held up a certain flag of dissatisfaction with where the world is going to, like most creative artists out there, but their approach is as direct as a bus slamming you in the face, which is by coincidence, exactly like their music sounds like, except that this EP is strangely enough the most melodic material they've ever put out. Divided into two parts, a four piece "movement" entitled "Dissent" and an ending song named "Defector", this EP combines the brutal aggressiveness of early material with the more mature sounding later stuff. The song structures are constructed in a very clever manner, sounding quite progressive at times, for example the four-piece "Dissent" that has very fluent passaging, meaning the songs are not abruptly separated from each other. A certain string can be recognized throughout the whole thing. The vocals are as always extremely powerful and harsh, a rarity in similar contemporary bands.

The EP has a perfect length of 16:25 minutes, which is neither too long nor too short and can be ingested in those periods where you need something juicy, yet appealingly aggressive at the same time, with all the aspects good metal needs, such as great "un-wanky" soli and dragging slower parts that add up to the atmosphere. One can say they've surely managed to separate the wolves from the sheep in this one.

(written for metal-archives and TMO on 16.02.10)

Unbelievable. That's all I can really say when I heard the second track of this EP. That feeling followed with the next 3 songs to come.

Misery Index put forth some of the best tracks in their career with "Dissent". From the beginning song, (a rather experimental/instrumental choice for these fellow grinders) to the end, if you could count how many times you'll be headbanging, you'll run out of fingers and mind space to count. Whoever structured the riffs on this chaotic EP should most definitely be paid millions. There are riffs in these few songs that would take other metal heads years to come up with, and Misery Index did this even just after one year of their extravagant classic debut "Retaliate".

The drumming is top notch, too. Full of vicious fills and catchy groove beats. Sub par with the crushing blasting accuracy against the snare drum, are Jason's vocals. Miserable grunts and raw screaming tears into the heart of this record, alongside political raping lyrics, burning a hole into all that is democracy and American patriotism.

Each song has a unique, furious edge to it, but if you are looking to find the life of this one, check out "Exception to the Ruled". I'm surprised that song isn't one of their more well known, as it has some melodic soloing over top of the already incredible song atmosphere, and then lays riffing and drum pounding to rip the jugular vein right out of your throat.

A hands down favored EP of all time for me.
Do not let this one pass your eyes and ears. Grab it, and listen to every last second of it.

Misery Index is a band I've always considered to simply be a "little brother" of Dying Fetus, for a few very obvious reasons. One reason being, obviously the members. Also, the undeniable similarity in their sounds. But, based on this nice little EP, I am inclined to believe all those things may change.

I was recently informed that even though Kevin Talley is no longer in MIsery Index, he did stick around long enough to make the drum tracks for this EP. I am still very sad and disappointed to know that he left, and I don't know what that means about the future drumming ...

The first track Sheep and Wolves is a slower, introduction song. It immediately suggests a slight change in style.

When the second track starts with a thrash riff, and leads into a nice groove. There is a surprisingly melodic part in the mid-section of the song, and a sweet solo. The production on the drums however has a very, very high pitch to it, and it's somewhat annoying.

The third tracks starts sounding like their previous stuff, (or Dying Fetus) though this actually is superior to their old stuff, in terms of structure and I suppose a sense of catchiness. The song has a good "breakdown" and some very enjoyable drumming. Of course, it's nothing new, but it works for them.

The fourth track starts with a gritty, brutal death metal part. But soon turns into a more hardcore sounding part. The song's a very short, kinda grind-ish song. But sets things up nicely for ...

Defector; probably the best track on the EP. There are some awesome chuga-chuga riffs, and killer drumming one display here. A decent portion of technicality (not on the level of DF, though) and the song is structured in a sort of progressive manner, not really repeating any of the parts. A very good song to nod and bang your head to.

Final thoughts: The bad: It's less technical than Dying Fetus, and obviously not as good. The only other complaint, is the drums are set at a very high pitch, and after a listen through, my ears are hurting. The good: Kevin stuck around long enough to make some killer drum tracks. Great grooves, and good enough riffs to listen to if you're sick of DF or Suffocation.

Hopefully this will make way for a good LP. All fans of these guys should check this one out, hopefully to get a taste of a good upcoming full length.