Review by Daniel for Sarmat - Determined to Strike (2023)

The nomination of New York avant-garde/technical death metal outfit Sarmat’s brand new debut album as the August feature release for our The Infinite clan has come at an opportune moment given that I was considering giving “Determined To Strike” a spin over the next month or so anyway. My interest had been tweaked by the descriptions I’d been reading online which indicated that the album is one of the more pure examples of the jazz/metal hybrid you’re likely to find &, in hindsight, that seems like a fair call. You see, Sarmat are a collaborative project that has ties to both fields. There can be no denying that their target audience is the extreme metal crowd on the evidence here but jazz fans shouldn’t find themselves in completely foreign territory either as the loose song-structures, melodic & rhythmic freedom & commitment to improvisation are drawn directly from jazz. It sounds great on paper but ambitious undertakings like these don’t always hit the mark so I was prepared for the outcome to go either way.

“Determined To Strike” is a relatively short six-track affair that wastes little time in presenting its full array of qualities. You can expect to hear some extremely chaotic riff construction that’s often based on ideas that sit closer to Mahavishnu Orchestra than they do Nile. They don’t always work for mine but when they do it’s generally when Sarmat hit on a more traditional death metal riff to offset the madness going on around it. Front man Andrew Gonzalez possesses an extremely guttural death growl that almost rivals Demilich main man Antti Boman for sheer depth. He does sound a little out of place when layered over such complex & sophisticated instrumentation if I’m being completely honest & he would definitely have been better suited to a more traditional brutal death metal band but he does a reasonable job of it nonetheless. Imperial Triumphant bassist/pianist Steve Blanco puts in an impressive display that highlights his undeniable chops but I’m afraid drummer James Jones (also of New York heavy metallers TOWER) struggles to keep up. To be fair on him, he’s had to cope with a pretty ordinary drum sound that lacks power & highlights every misstep. Still, he’s pretty clearly the weakest link here & I feel that “Determined To Strike” could have been a more appealing release with a more accomplished performance behind the kit. The strongest contribution though comes in the form of some very exciting & melodically adventurous jazz fusion guitar work from the dual attack of Cotter Champlin (Artificial Brain) & Matt Hollenberg (Cleric/John Frum/John Zorn/Simulacrum). I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the two tracks that I enjoy the most are the ones with the most melodic & expansive guitar solos in “Formed From Filth” (my personal favourite) & the title track. Also, the regular use of a brass section is a surprisingly successful addition, often in conjunction with blasting death metal riffage too thank you very much.

The production job is a bit of an issue for Sarmat to be honest. It’s not just the drum sound although it’s probably the worst component. I feel that a cleaner sound production was essential in order to get the most out of an extremely complex metal release like this one but what we’ve received is a little too murky to do the album justice. It’s not a deal-breaker by any means but it certainly has an impact on my overall enjoyment. There are times when Sarmat seem almost on the verge on of the sickly, veering out of control through loose structures that hint at complete collapse. It’s only the class of some of the instrumentalists that manage to right the ship just in time to prevent a catastrophe. Perhaps this element might be appealing to some our members but I personally prefer a touch more precision in my extreme metal.

You likely won’t have heard a metal record that sounds much like “Determined To Strike” before which is a definite feather in Sarmat’s caps. Imagine the avant-garde, jazz-infused sound of Imperial Triumphant mixed with the complex dissonance of Gorguts & toss in the chaos of Defeated Sanity & the absolute insanity of some of John Zorn’s jazz projects & you’ll come close to imagining what’s in store for you. It won’t be for everyone but I have no doubt that there will be some that absolutely worship it. I have to admit that I find “Determined To Strike” to be more of an interesting listen than a consistently enjoyable one but it’s served its purpose quite well in leaving me feeling somewhat refreshed at its completion.