Album Review: "Asystole" by Amanita Virosa

Asystole

From Finland we have the debut effort from Amanita Virosa.

I have no idea what those words mean, but I'm sure it's Finnish for awesome.

The band originally formed in 2008 and in 2014 they began putting their music to tape and here in 2015 we have their music.

Amanita Virosa doesn't precisely fall into a category of metal. I know I claim to not really care about the subgenres, but then I reference them all of the time.

I'm not sure what I mean anymore.

With six members in the band, it's far easier to venture off into something different than say with just four members. I suppose it's a lot like what Jerry Garcia once said about the Grateful Dead, when you bring in a piece of music, it comes back very differently in this band.

I would hazard a guess that Amanita Virosa is similar in that way.

Amanita Virosa

Asystole does not defy convention initially.

There is an overture that gives the listener a chance to properly meet the members of the band.

I must say, that after that short song, I was thinking it really is nice to meet you.

First off, let's address the keyboard player. Most times, when an extreme metal band has a keyboard player, it means they're black metal, but I will assure that they are not black metal...

Though the keys sometimes sound as such...that trancy under the guitars sound...

Vocally, the music is pure death metal.  There is a strong influence of Tampa Bay and English Grindcore there. Both styles of vocals offer some texture and help to differentiate the songs. It's also like having an extra level of metal there.

The guitars are strong and fast. Aside from just powerful shredding, there's some beautiful melody, both in the solos and the riffs. This band is built upon melody, it's just that the vocals provide the riffs, not the notes.

The keys are what really separate them from the rest of the metal herd. It's easy to just play the underneath music, but here we are treated to not just ethereal keyboards, but piano counter melodies and harmonies to the guitars.

The piano is part of the riff. I've never heard anything like this.

Release: 6/12/15
Genre: Metal
Label: Inverse Records
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