Beneath The Massacre - 'Dystopia'

A year after their last CD, Canadian technical death metallers Beneath The Massacre kept the team intact for Dystopia. They once again used Yannick St. Amand (Despised Icon, Ion Dissonance) to produce and Alan Douches (Mastodon, Hatebreed) to master. This time around they used Jason Suecof (Trivium, All That Remains) to mix the CD.

The band's songwriting has matured a bit, but Dystopia is pretty similar to Mechanics Of Dysfunction. The songs are packed with highly technical riffs and skillful guitar work from Christopher Bradley. Periodic breakdowns add a bit of 'core to the mix.

The tempos on Dystopia are fast, but there are slightly more slower parts this time around. Songs like "Lithium Overdose" have extended breakdowns that slow the speed down to a crawl without any drop in intensity.

Elliot Desgagnes vocal performance has improved as well. His death metal growls are angry and passionate and he uses a bit more range than he has on past releases. Beneath The Massacre still needs more uniqueness to really excel in the death metal genre, but their technical wizardry will keep their momentum moving forward, at least for a while.

(released October 28, 2008 on Prosthetic Records)