Slimelord make use of a twisty, sticky type of dying steel, fusing the hallucinogenic swampiness of Worm or Tomb Mildew, with the colder extra surgical brutality of acts like Replicant or Asystole. Whether or not it drags itself alongside like a primordial monster or comes at you with flailing, slimy limbs at breakneck velocity, Chytridiomycosis Relinquished is persistently bonkers and brutal. Solely closing instrumental “Heroic Demise” is considerably simple, with a tuneful, chilled-out melody of harmonized guitars, till its closing part anyway. However did I point out the geese (“The Beckoning Bell”)? The frogs (“Intestine-Mind Axis”)? The viscerally clear effervescent of goodness-is aware of-what (“Splayed Mudscape”)? These area samples are virtually distracting, however in the long run, they aren’t, as an alternative including nonetheless extra aptitude and flavour to the vibrantly-colored concoction. The truth is, my favourite a part of the entire album could be that atmospheric pause in “Intestine-Mind Axis” when a refrain of frogs “ribbet” their manner throughout the echo earlier than a tremolo climbs its manner upwards.
These little additions apart, essentially the most placing attribute of the music is its elasticity. Compositions are strikingly dynamic, flowing gymnastically from breathy, stalking dying-doom (“The Hissing Moor”) into chaotic cavernous assaults (“The Beckoning Bell,” “Tidal Slaughtermarsh”), to shrill, backbone-tingling guitar wailing (“Intestine-Mind Axis,” “The Hissing Moor”) within the blink of an eye fixed. Liquid fretless bass meanders up and down very audibly, drawling in your ears across the clanging guitar chords and deep rumbling growls (particularly on “Splayed Mudscape,” “Batrachomorpha Resurrections Chamber,” and “Tidal Slaughtermarsh”). This bass omnipresence makes the entire expertise really feel type of heat and hazy, which makes for a clean, even nice listening expertise on the extra melodic finish (“Intestine-Mind Axis,” “Heroic Demise”), while offering a wonderful backdrop of abdomen-knotting lows for the piercing, sharp-edged highs of dissonant, angular guitar riffing (“The Beckoning Bell,” “Splayed Mudscape”). We clearly can’t discuss concerning the dynamism of this factor with out mentioning the rabid work occurring behind the package too, tumbling down in cascades (“The Hissing Moor”), spilling out into backflipping rolls (“Batrachomorpha…”) and slamming in rhythmic solidarity with stabbing riffs (“Splayed Mudscape”).
The unfastened, barely unhinged nature of issues threatens to overwhelm. This is the reason, to my ears no less than, “Intestine-Mind Axis” stands out so powerfully. Opening with a sinister chorus that bubbles up right into a squealing, fluttering guitar solo, it manages to pack in all of the mad dissonance, the erraticism of shifting tempos, and atmospheric oddities (see my above remark concerning the frogs) while remaining compelling by its continued, subtly mournful theme. “Heroic Demise” goes all-in on the palatable melodicism, however feels too protected and bland beside its companions, whereas then again, tracks corresponding to “Tidal Slaughtermarsh” really feel too tangled and clamorous. In sections, these latter two, and all songs correct on the album, do strike that fragile and good steadiness between confrontational discordance and wild magnificence, however perseverance might be required to wring it out.
Chytridiomycosis Relinquished is, nevertheless weird it’d sound, fairly a delicate document. Perplexing at first look, it will get higher on each pay attention, as extra little intricacies reveal themselves. In a world the place bands can not promote their sound on merely “being brutal” in the event that they need to stand out, I’ll all the time have time for many who bend and stretch the boundaries of what we name dying steel. Slimelord, as one such band, have my help, and they need to have yours too in case your dying steel cup of tea tends to be one made with mushrooms, reasonably than your common breakfast mix. Get some Chytridiomycosis in your system and benefit from the experience.
Ranking: Very Good
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps
Label: 20 Buck Spin
Web sites: Bandcamp | Fb
Releases Worldwide: March eighth, 2024