Azusa - Heavy Yoke (2018)^{Release ID: 20419}

If you were to ask the earlier metalheads for their favorite supergroup, would they say Anthrax spin-off band Stormtroopers of Death? Most likely. The answer may vary for metalheads of different styles or eras, all wanting to hear several members of their favorite bands united. Azusa isn't my favorite supergroup, but it's real close! The group was formed by two members of Extol and Absurd2, guitarist Christer Espevoll and drummer David Husvik. Joining them is The Dillinger Escape Plan bassist Liam Wilson and Sea + Air vocalist Eleni Zafiriadou, all ready to shock the world!

Coming from the US, Norway, and Greece, the band perform a solid modern avant-garde-ish progressive metal to remind some of Ram-Zet's sound bleeding into Extol. And you know what? Eleni can perhaps be the most versatile female vocalist I've known, practically surpassing Julie Christmas and Karyn Crisis. From singing to screaming and even whispering, a lot of drama is created to make this experience out of the ordinary.

The twisted thrashy opener "Interstellar Islands" will get you headbanging in delight right away. As thrashy as the backbone is, there's a bit of the atmosphere that would appear more in the rest of the album. Things get calmer amongst the alt-metal parts of "Heart of Stone" that isn't too far from Stolen Babies. The title track has the frantic mathcore of TDEP, though slightly plain and predictable. "Fine Lines" takes a break from the recent Veil of Maya-ish extreme djenty progressive metal for something softer and ominous, like one of Julie Christmas' post-metal works.

We take a space trip through "Lost in the Ether" that's like a more dissonant and chaotic on the thrashy progressive metal sound of late 80s Voivod. "Spellbinder" adds in a bit of the ambient progressiveness of Born of Osiris, while replacing that band's metalcore with tech-thrash. There's also an excellent ballad, "Programmed to Distress".

You shouldn't be too surprised by the sudden switch to thrashy intensity in "Eternal Echo", and instead enjoy the moshing passion. The awesome "Iniquitous Spiritual Praxis" frantically switches through different tempos and time signatures, all from different corners, in just under 4 minutes, unlike those other extreme progressive metal bands that make long epics. "Succumb to Sorrow" is shorter but reminds me of the heavier Persefone. "Distant Call" ends it all with a bit of the djenty side of Architects.

You can never stop appreciating how original this band can be once you hear this album, ranging from beautiful to nefarious with barely any limits. Although this might not be for everyone on Earth, Azusa has made the kind of sound the future really needs. For this supergroup, greatness shall not die!

Favorites: "Interstellar Islands", "Heart of Stone", "Lost in the Ether", "Spellbinder", "Programmed to Distress", "Iniquitous Spiritual Praxis"