Signs of the Swarm, the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania deathcore merchants, like to break stuff. For this, their fifth album, the band teamed up with famed producer Josh Schroeder (Lorna Shore, King 810), successfully producing something so brutal, it blew the subwoofer in Josh’s high-end set up, much to his dismay (and the band’s amusement).
While staying true to the deathcore blueprint with which the band gained their increasingly ardent fanbase, for Amongst the Low & Empty, Signs of the Swarm draw from a range of influences – including Djent, death metal, industrial, and metalcore – always with the emphasis is on weight, with the resultant album the darkest and heaviest of their career.
It opens amidst a flurry of clinical double kick and churning, low-tuned riffage, the title track setting out the band’s brutal remit in just four harrowing minutes. With vocalist David Simonich unleashing a range of vocal styles, from bowel-wrenching roars to tortured screams (none of which sound entirely human), it’s clear from the outset that Signs of the Swarm intend to take no prisoners, and so it transpires as they unleash the death metal horror of Tower of Torsos. Allowing just a touch of dynamic to creep into the bludgeoning assault, Tower of Torsos sees the band experiment with glitching electronica, only adding to the dystopian atmosphere that surrounds the track. With its predecessor having devolved into a slow-motion churn of bowel-scraping riffs, the dizzying speed and mechanical precision of Pray for Death is almost a relief, although it soon finds a more settled groove, neatly augmented by the industrial elements shooting through the mix. Better still, the heavily processed intro to Borrowed Time obscures one of the album’s most coldly industrial pieces, the stabbing riffs and tech elements leading to a surprisingly engaging chorus which, while still unutterably brutal, hints at just enough melody to keep things memorable. Offering a brief digression, the opening mantra of Between Fire and Stone nods in the direction of Behemoth, before sidestepping into an industro-djent hybrid, comprising elastic riffs and ravaged vocals. It rounds out an impressive first half, with the listener feeling slightly shellshocked at the scale of it all.
Opening the second half and, just as you start to buckle under the weight of it all, the eerie introduction to Shackles Like Talons, provides just enough respite to allow the ensuing track to maintain its impact. It segues directly into album highlight DREAMKILLER, an airily brutal piece, with a blazing solo courtesy of new guitarist Carl Schulz (Great American Ghost, Degrader). Next up, Trivium’s Matt Heafy drops in to lend a hand on the frantic outpouring that is The Witch Beckons. Offering no quarter, you get the sense that Matt enjoyed the opportunity to simply let loose, and the track slithers directly into the unnerving, industrial-tinged horror of Echelon. With the album hurtling towards its conclusion, Faces Without Names takes the djent blueprint and lights a fire underneath it, Bobby Crow seeking to outdo The Berzerker in terms of speed, although the ambient outro provides the perfect segue into Malady, which brings the album to an end as the band deploy the sonic equivalent of a trephine to the listener’s skull.
Amongst the Low & Empty is no easy listen, but it is a frighteningly well-constructed album, with Signs of the Swarm employing just enough dynamic to ensure that it doesn’t all become one dizzying blur. With Josh working closely with the band, there’s a focus and intensity that is impossible to resist, while the ambient elements and subtle segues only serve to make the album more compelling. However, as impressive as the album is musically, it is David Simonich’s vocals that will attract the most attention. The sheer physicality of his performance is remarkable, while his range ensures that each song has its own unique character. A ferocious, engaging journey into a heart of darkness, Amongst the Low & Empty is an impressively diverse, brutally intense trip. 9/10
