Truly, there is no way to guess anymore what direction anyone isn’t willing to take death metal. Personally, I love that! Hearing the same thing over and over can hardly be an issue if you have undeniable, unyielding love for that sound, but there’s always something to be said for those that shake things up whether it be for personal experimentation or purely to be different even if it doesn’t come out well. Both the technical and progressive reaches of the style have been absolute bounties in that regard with it never being a better time to lose yourself in all that it offers. With their own sound that sets them down a path that is starting to become more and more common in this particular reach of death metal, Humaniac’s latest creation is far from anything that can be considered bland or repetitive in any form.
It’s never easy to predict what particular avenue a band might travel down when we’re talking about the more progressive and technical stretches of death metal for truly the sky is the limit which makes such an idea of pinning that elusive sound sometimes impossible. Tonight, I sat down to listen to what Humaniac had to offer with their third full-length album, and I don’t think there’s any way that anyone could have properly prepared me for what’s to be found within nine tracks of “Until the Light Fakes Us” for all that it has to offer and dares to bring forth. There is no such thing as repetition in this creation with even certain songs seeming to do away with the concept in favor of an overall experience that’s as unyielding in its power as it is beautiful in its complexity with every minute feeling as though it has something different to boast, some new riff to throw down, or some new sound to throw at us without any sort of warning with Humaniac pulling it all off with surprising talent and tenacity on a scale that leaves one simply bewildered. Everything that’s brought forth here is the precise type of material that we’ve come to expect out of this modern world of progressive tendencies and technical prowess where we truly have no idea what to expect, but it’s because of bands like Humaniac and albums like “Until the Light Fakes Us” that such unpredictability is all part of the fun.
While it can easily seem like this crazy corner of death metal is becoming more and more populated with talent as the years roll on, it’s still important to remember just how monumental creations like this are and how fascinating bands like Humaniac can still be even after all the other performances that we’ve heard from their contemporaries. “Until the Light Fakes Us” never once tries to one-up the competition in any form in order to simply do what it may in order to deliver us an experience that we’d be hard-pressed to find elsewhere, and I know damn well that you would struggle to do such given all that Humaniac has achieved here in spades.
LISTEN to “Until the Light Fakes Us” on Bandcamp here.
LIKE Humaniac on Facebook here.
Head-Banger Reviews 