SKULLGRID

The hardest-working band in Extreme Tech does it again with a collection of craziness and unnatural behavior on this, an album that takes 'noodling' to a new level and throws every rehearsal session, practiced scale and mind-numbing calculation into the mix, somehow reassembling it again in order. Sounds are squeezed, instruments are beaten, and blisters are developed. The fight ensues with the ridiculous title cut followed by the only slightly less ridiculous 'Canada', a staggering piece that represents the best of this new breed of tech trailblazers. 'Of Cursed Womb' is sheer chaos as is 'You Are Number Six' which shows the uncanny ability of this trio to maintain discipline under the most harrowing circumstances, and 'Some Mist' and 'Scepters' are like being trapped in the belly of an enormous machine with no obvious way out. A bit of math-core to end with the 8-minute 'Transient Exhuberance'.

This band is doing what others in metal would like to but can't because they just don't have the balls. Lucky for us, Behold...the Arctopus does.