September 2021 Feature Release – The Revolution Edition

So just like that we find that a new month is upon us which of course means that we’ll be nominating a brand new monthly feature release for each clan. This essentially means that we’re asking you to rate, review & discuss our chosen features for no other reason than because we enjoy the process & banter. We’re really looking forward to hearing your thoughts on our chosen releases so don’t be shy.

This month’s feature release for The Revolution has been nominated by shadowdoom9 (Andi). It's the classic 1999 sophomore album "We Are The Romans" from Washington-based mathcore outfit Botch.

https://metal.academy/releases/1731

Thanks Daniel for accepting my feature release submission! Here's my review summary:

There's a mathematical pollution in the metalcore air, and it's a great one too! Those patterns needed to work out with crushing sounds and atmosphere achieved perfectly, passing by in a way that might make the band frustrated, but they took their frustration out on their sound. This results in the subtle transformations in each song executed smoothly while engaging in real angry instrumentation that create a masterpiece. The album speaks softly and subtly well-written in the midst of chaotic punishing technical metalcore/mathcore madness. The album is intelligent and abrasive. It pounds through clouds of dissonant distortion and otherworldly annihilation! We are the Romans is never over the top. Each and every riff is organic with different variations that fit perfectly. The songs begin and end either differently or the same. The structures are the right ones for every song, with all the riffs, patterns, and harmonies in flawless flow. And all that wild action leads up to an epic 10-minute end-track (along with a hidden electronic remix). Still this album competes with a couple others released around this time as the best mind-blowing mathcore yet!

5/5

Recommended songs: "To Our Friends in the Great White North", "Transitions from Persona to Object", "C. Thomas Howell as the 'Soul Man'", "Saint Matthew Returns to the Womb", "Man the Ramparts"

For fans of: Converge, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Gaza (just like yours in the Mathcore thread, Daniel!)

Great selection Andi. In fact this is one of my all-time favourite records. Here are my notes from a year ago:

Most of our regulars would be aware that I don't dish out the full five stars very often at all. A release has to be absolutely perfectly in tune with my personal taste & also be impeccably performed & executed with an unparalleled level of creative ambition even to be considered. But 1999's sophomore album from Washington-based mathcore outfit Botch is not only an amazing release for the subgenre but it may well be the best mathcore record I've ever experienced. I honestly didn't know that this style of music could reach these heights. This is truly superior metal music that thumbs its nose at the competition.

For fans of Converge, The Dillinger Escape Plan & Gaza.

5/5

I'm really glad I gave this one a second chance after letting it sit for a bit, because it really clicked compared to the first listen. I don't have too much to say about Mathcore in general since I'm grossly unfamiliar with it outside of the big names, so I'm not sure what else to say other than this is great. Converge in their Jane Doe era was always a bit too abrasive and chaotic for me, so Botch having a cleaner sound and more focused songwriting really helps them play to my preferences. Definitely going to be going back to this one, I can see why it's spoken of so highly. 

4.5/5