Black Hole Machine

Death metal fans, Canadian cyber metal geeks, here is one album that should satisfy both those of the old school and the new school alike. As its title suggests, Black Hole Machine is a steel-toothed vortex about to swallow you. Its grooves are mechanical, its melodies are cold, and it is shrouded in hypnotic electronic effects – worthy of a sci-fi movie –, but what should retain your attention is the power of its riffs that will blow you away with chirurgical precision.

The album shows clear signs of a long journey in the studio, where it was nurtured with special care. We should mention the excellent work of Producer Mike Bond and Pebble Studios, who were instrumental into crafting probably one of the best metal albums produced in the country in 2011. The results can be noticed in the perfectly executed drums, and the high precision guitar works.

On the musicianship level, Black Hole Machine is mostly driven by the rhythm section (or the rhythm guitars), rather than by melodies or solos. This focus provides the music with more attack, while staying away from monotony through variations of tempos, and the addition of clean vocal, sampling and/or synth effects.

While Dissentient comes from Ottawa, we can’t help but think of the few other actual local death metal bands, such as Insurrection, Killitorous, Deformatory, Mortor, Obduracy, etc. Worthy of mention, two out of four Dissentient members also play in Insurrection: Vincent Laprade-Séguin on guitar and Stef Jomphe on bass.

Given this ratio, one could think that Dissentient has many similarities with the aforementioned band. I’d say yes and no. Yes, since Dissentient and Insurrection probably drink from the same metal cool-aid; no, because the whole album reflects in many ways the work of Phill Campbell, founder of the band. Along with Taylor Calderone’s forceful yet detailed drum technique, Campbell’s rhythm guitar lays all groundwork for the music, to the extent that we’re left wondering if he recorded himself both guitars, and what happened to the usually very organic bass playing of Stef Jomphe in the mix.

Dissentient reminds me of Neuraxis and many other intergalactic death metal bands, among the best in the national genre. It proudly sits next to the bands that crafted the Canadian cyber metal of the 1990’s and early 2000’s, although those were precursors of anything that came after them.

With a robotic soundscape (we all love robots, right?) and some polished passages, Dissentient’s album incorporates some metalcore elements (“Black Hole Machine”, “Degradation Field”) while making a statement in the new wave of melodic death metal. It offers a variety of tempos that can weight on us like gravity (“Incorporeal”), and solos arrangement worthy of Strapping Young Lad (“Destination Nowhere”). The centerpiece of the album, which will undoubtedly attract attention by its melodies, is "Eternal." With a progressive structure that goes beyond 7 minutes, it displays great skills of musicianship and composition, the mix of brutal chugging and melodies, both simple and complex riffs, and pretty much anything that gives the song exactly what it needs, without losing itself into a sea of details.

Dissentient neither fell into the trap of composing an album to impress its friends nor tried to pay homage to their personal favourites. From the first song to the last, Black Hole Machine flows naturally with an impressive dose of wisdom, brilliance and maturity. I say mature because I think that today, and unlike the 1990s, it has become the rule, among unsigned bands, to do a few (if not many) albums before being able to create ‘the’ masterwork. Dissentient might be an exception to the rule, and I confess that I was destabilized listening to Black Hole Machine.

To sum up, Black Hole Machine is in my opinion a balance between Canada’s tradition of cyber metal and a certain amount of new ideas. I highly recommend it to any fan of death metal, on the one hand, and I have no doubt that many signed groups will envy it, on the other. Its qualities lie within its songs, but the production’s coating will allow you to enjoy the fullness of its robotic calculated weight, and a firepower that will remind you the largest gear of StarCraft.

- theBlackHull
Originally written for blog.metalmadeincanada.ca