Beyond Creation: Earthborn Evolution

Montreal, Quebec is known for the fast and brutal sport of ice hockey, its brutal winters, and over the past few decades, its fast and brutal musical exports. Now boasting one of the finest metalfests in the western hemisphere in Heavy Montreal, the region has finally gained some worldwide respect for its music scene. Beyond Creation, formed in 2005, is yet another example of the musical vision coming down from the north of late. Releasing their debut album in 2011, the band caught the attention of Seasons of Mist Records, who just this year released Beyond Creation's sophomore effort, entitled Earthborn Evolution.

Beyond Creation are described as playing technical death metal. Like most genre tags, this one can be misleading. Too often bands of this ilk forsake songwriting for technicality, allowing their songs to run into and over one another, muddling any chance of truly distinguishing between the tracks. The first phrase that comes to mind when spinning Earthborn Evolution, however, is 'Dream Theater meets Behemoth.' The basic song structures on each track are uncannily reminiscent of late 90's/early 00's era Behemoth.

When combined with the harsh bellow of vocalist/guitarist Simon Gerard - which is one half of a dualing harsh vocal tandem - the sonic likeness to that era of the Polish juggernaut's career is startling. Where Beyond Creation deviate from this formula is in the musical adventures they take via the outstanding bass guitar wizardry of Dominic 'Forest' Lapointe and guitarist Kevin Chartre. Jam-style bass noodling and ultra-creative guitar soloing come up often, rising like a sonic, technicolor dawn over the double-bass death metal foundation of each song. Another way in which Beyond Creation gets it right is in limiting track length. In this way, the songs don't lose that focused punch so intrinsic to death metal.

On "Theatrical Delirium," one of the longer tracks on the album, one can hear some quieter moments reminiscent of vintage Skolnick-era Testament, referring to the instrumentals sprinkled throughout the Bay Area thrash monster's lengthy discography. When listening to stunners like the title track, with its trippy guitar interludes, one might here the hyperactive, right-on-point drumming of Phillipe Boucher and want to start a nice circle pit. But the totality of this band's sound, and the listening experience they've created on Earthborn Evolution, will probably make the listener want to stand there, mouth agape, taking it all in. Again, it is so easy for music of this caliber to become an antiseptic exercise in wankery and showing off, but Beyond Creation do homage to the soul of rock music here, embracing it into the technical maelstrom that is their sound. If there is one negative it manifests not in their sound but in their logo. A band of this heightened skill should not have a logo that looks like it was hastily scrawled onto a middle school textbook in a fit of Ritalin induced angst. But in the grand scheme this is a small gripe. Earthborn Evolution is a major contribution to the lush spectacle of modern heavy metal. Ignore it at your peril.

Track Listing

1. Som342
2. zoom
3. Elusive Reverence
4. Sous La Lueur De L'empereur
5. Earthborn Evolution
6. The Great Revelation
7. Neurotical Transmissions
8. Abstrait Dialog
9. The Axiom
10. L'exorde
11. Theatrical Delirium
12. Fundamental Process

Added: November 29th 2014
Reviewer: Nicholas Franco
Score:
Related Link: Beyond Creation Bandcamp
Hits: 2314
Language: english

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