Songs on the CD:
- 1. Intro
- 2. War Creed
- 3. Obsequies
- 4. Inertia
- 5. Fate of Demise
- 6. 自我凌遲
A short yet substantial EP, Crazimalz’s work has some significant high points that are on show in the songs. The short, military style Intro is a bit like a soldier’s lament, with a burdened, tragic weight to it, despite the simplicity of the guitars in it. This segues into the hard, crunching War Creed, in all its drudginess interspersed very well with the vocal harmonies that. There’s a sadness to the song, and they display a melodic style that’s very reminiscent of eP [Entity Paradigm, one of Pakistan’s best bands], in that there’s all-out screaming too, but that ruse is not overused, and counterbalanced with the bits that are sung. There’s significantly more anger in Obsequies, with the modern, Noughties’ interpretation of Metallica’s thudding riffs, including a classic stretchy guitar line. Inertia is more in the Children of Bodom mould, right from the opening with its cool lick, the grinding feel of metal, interspersed with the classic rock-style harmonies. Notably, the style of drumwork changes repeatedly through the song, moving ably between metal and hardcore, lending the song some versatility. It also retains a sound that’s a bit like White Zombie during the La Sexorcista days.
Fate of Demise has a beginning more typical of the Smashing Pumpkins than any metal band, but sheds this quickly and emerges a solid metalcore butterfly. The guitars have menace, and the song has a melodic overtone, adding to the hammering backing guitar. 自我凌遲 is probably the strongest song, with a thudding start, and a significantly more oblique approach to the metal guitar style than in the rest of the album. This gives the song excellent balance. There’s even an acapella bit, that’s been impressively done.
The vocals on all the songs are excellently done, with a good range and strong technique, and they lead you through the songs well. However, the trouble with the album is that despite its pluses, it really doesn’t hit you as hard as it should. It has too much polish for its own good, and the soft rock overtones make it sound like the rough edges have been sandpapered off, along with most of the individuality. The songs tend to descend into standard metal boilerplate, and this could make the songs seem to belong to Been-there-heard-that-land. However, for a listener being inducted into listening to metal, this would serve as an excellent lead-in to the genre.
— Shashwati Kala
