Originally written by Jason Jordan.
Man, talk about a landslide. In the previous Mp3 War, Beneath the Massacre laid waste to both Ritual Carnage and Slowmotion Apocalypse with minuscule resistance. Furthermore, after spinning Evidence of Inequity numerous times, I can see why. However – despite the album’s innate quality – I must register a bunch of complaints that I feel are warranted and substantial.
With Evidence of Inequity, we’re offered a twenty-minute slab of insanely fast death metal that radiates with oodles of talent. Everything about this record is blistering: the soloing, drumming, grooving, and growling. Undoubtedly, most all of you are familiar with the opener in “Comforting Prejudice,” and Beneath the Massacre don’t differ too radically from the path that’s forged by the aforementioned. Talent-laden instrumentation leads the assault while massive grooves accompany; the full-on intensity of the band, not to mention complexity, remind me of the American masters Nile with a sound that essentially replicates Despised Icon’s shtick (thanks Mark!). “Profitable Killcount” is different in so much that it relies on riffage more than anything else to carry itself. And – more often than not – Beneath the Massacre prefer to lash us with short bursts, as no song crosses the four-minute barrier.
Now, though the musicianship of the group is about as noteworthy as physically possible, the production wasn’t able to get on my good side. The guitars are always noodling around, which is fine in and of itself, but the fact that the leads are needlessly high-pitched downplays the overall façade, plus the drums themselves could use some beefing up in order to conjure the sound that Evidence of Inequity so desperately craves. Or, at least I think so.
Essentially, what we have here, is yet another formidable offering from our neighbors to the north. Yes, Quebec has succeeded once again. But, there’s still much to be addressed if Beneath the Massacre wish to rise to the top of the heap, and we’re definitely going to need a full-length in order to weigh these guys’ stuff adequately.
