Review by UnhinderedbyTalent for Cynic - Focus (1993)

I genuinely want to like early Cynic more than I can ever muster my levels of enthusiasm too.  The level of talent on display is nothing short of remarkable on Focus yet it has never sat well with me and this has nothing to do with the mind bending complexity and torrid fusion aspects on display.  I will come clean early on in this review and say that I just do not understand why they had to deploy that fucking annoying alien/robot voice with such regularity throughout the record.  I mean look, I get the cosmic theme but after the first time of hearing it I knew I never wanted to hear it again, so the fact that it is on there a few times killed this record for me.

Masvidal and Reinert made one of the most important contributions to death metal when they took the already clear and present promise of Death to outer universe places with their contributions to Human making one of Death’s finest records and showing the genre as a whole what was possible in what to many was a very closed book when it came to the possibility of expansion.  I think what made their contribution there so effective was that they had some reins to hold them back from going completely bonkers and they very much had the inhibition settings turned to the “off” position when they got around to their debut record some two years later.

Don’t get me wrong, I applaud the balls to be able to release this record and for the most part I like what I hear.  The time changes, the searing and spontaneous leads, the engine build of the bass and whatever the fuck rhythm Reinert is creating in there is a feast for the senses for virtually the whole record.  It just the curve of the ball that eventually takes it away from my receptive hands is the irritation of the excessive use of what to all intent and purpose is a sound effect.

It is a one of a kind record for the time and one that rightly deserves recognition but for me it is not one that can get anywhere near five stars.