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Origin

Antithesis

Written by: EW on 25/05/2008 23:32:05

It\'s hard to imagine that in 1970, when Iommi / Butler / Ward / Osbourne gave the world a new pleasure, Heavy Metal, they would ever imagine their creation progressing to what Origin deliver here on \"Antithesis\". I have rarely, nay possibly even never, heard such jaw-dropping brutality and technicality as this whilst all along witnessing a band somehow keep things in check and worth listening to. Prepare to be battered, bloodied and bruised and then severely beaten again for good measure as we enter one of 2008\'s Extreme Metal records of the year.

Origin, of Kansas, USA, clearly don\'t know the word \'subtlety\' as from the opening millisecond of \"Antithesis\" the drums blast, the vocals growl, the guitars shred and the bassist lays some of the meanest lines since Steve DiGiorgio of the Death era. \"The Aftermath\" kicks off proceedings in a more immediate and intense manner than probably any other album ever and is one of the album\'s highlights, showcasing a 3-pronged vocal attack, with vocalist James Lee providing the primary gut-wrenching growls in similar styles to Frank Mullen of Suffocation. To select the album\'s musical highlight from either the stickwork of John Longstreth or the virtuoso shredding solos of Paul Ryan and the returned Jeremy Turner is impossible as throughout the opening track, \"Consuming Misery\", \"Finite\" or just about any other you could choose to mention the level of playing of all is incredible. \"Antithesis\" flies by at staggering speeds, only slowing momentarily during the likes of the title-track and \"Ubiquitous\", where a distinct Nile edge especially is apparent in the solos of Ryan and Turner. The double-edged sword facing any band as brutal as Origin is the need to make each song sound different when played at 1000mph against maintaining a consistently high overall level of destruction and chaos and I believe Origin achieve this, just. There are times when one thinks they\'ve heard this before but Origin\'s saving grace comes in the form of small moments of brilliance, slowing down the juggernaut to give the listener some chugging, heavy as hell riffs and occasionally even a discordant one for good measure.

\"Antithesis\" finishes off the album in fine fashion with more of the same: double-bass ferocity on the drums and finger-bending-defying solos, giving you the impression the band need to be somewhere fast and they\'re trying their damned hardest to get there. Music like this can never be commercially popular, it is simply too fast, heavy and mercilessly extreme for most ears to take, so be warned! For those brave enough, it is one of the best brutal Death Metal albums I\'ve heard in years so find your ear plugs for their upcoming European tour, it cannot be missed!

Download: Finite, The Aftermath, Consuming Misery
For The Fans Of: Nile, Suffocation, Behemoth, Necrophagist
Listen: Myspace
Buy: iTunes

Release date 07.04.2008
Relapse Records
Provided by Target ApS