The Red Chord – Fused Together in Revolving Doors (2002)

Guy Kozowyk used to drive a bus for the mentally ill. Considering the lyrics (which are written to sound like the ramblings of insane people), and the overall approach to songwriting, it’s clearly intentional that this album sounds so fragmented and manic. At its base, this is a death metal album with a good deal of hardcore punk influence, although most of that is probably streamed through the Suffocation/Cryptopsy filter. This implies various things – breakdowns (or at least slow sections, since the riffing continues through them), blastbeating, and an overall percussive, rhythmically complex approach to the genre. It’s also quite technical, with plenty of atonal riffs and demented solos going all over the fretboards, although nothing really reaches the level of an “Obscura” or a “Nespithe”.

This, on its own, is about the same as a gigantic portion of the genre, so what really sets The Red Chord apart from other acts is the schizophrenic mania. It manifests in the songwriting, with its intentionally abrupt transitions, amongst other things, and is where the hardcore/metalcore influence is most felt. The key here is that it is not random, yet everything is highly chaotic, with relatively little repetition of riffs, and tempo changes all the time. We also see a variety of vocals – death growls interspersed with higher snarls, and a small amount of spoken word, and the occasional section of ‘easy listening’ (check out the introduction to “Dreaming in Dog Years” for an example). It’s all about dichotomy, as songs warp back and forth between contrasting ideas  abruptly and dramatically, providing breakdowns for the scene kiddies and diversity for the rest of us.

On later albums, this band upped the hardcore influence and the insane rambling lyrics further, and based on the strengths of the debut, I’ll want to check such out.

Highlights: “Like A Train Through A Pigeon”, “Dreaming in Dog Years”, “Nihilist”