Paria Misanthropos

It's not that hard for me to get bored with an entire sub-genre of hardcore or metal. A band or two will come along, and influence hundreds of new bands, most of which hardly achieve half of this new sound. This phenomenon bogs down musical progression, but it's always happened that way, and I'm sure it will continue. With that being said, I will let everyone know that chaotic metal/hardcore, or "tech" hardcore, has become immensely boring to me. Sure, I can always appreciate musical talent, but for a long time there hasn't been a technical hardcore or metal band that has given me the same feeling as I had when I first heard Coalesce, Dillinger Escape Plan, or Cryptopsy. And sure, there are tons of talented, technical hardcore bands. However, the market has been saturated as of late, and only a few stand above the pack. For me, Omaha Nebraska's Paria is one of the few. Without knowing the band, I have been waiting for this record. What Paria has managed to do with Misanthropos is inspiring to me as a fan of heavy music. Is Paria a completely original-sounding band No. However, what they bring to the table is a conglomerate of influences, so tightly woven that it is nothing short of a sonic wrecking-ball. To be completely basic in description, I will say that Paria plays a chaotic combination of metal and hardcore. That might be the best way to describe the sound of this band, because there are so many layers in these songs, and it might take too long to describe them all. For those who have never heard one note from Paria, let me paint you an audio picture. Imagine if you mixed the sound of The Red Chord with the sound of "We Are The Romans"-era Botch, and then kicked in some serious melodic, death metal. The main thing that I love about this record is the band's ability to apply any element to any part of their song. Melodic blast beats, with death metal growls Sure. Huge, hardcore breakdowns, with Gothenburg-influenced riffing That too. Sounds familiar, but this band manages to make it sound fresh. Paria smashes all of this into jazzy breaks, ala Dillinger Escape Plan, at dizzying tempos. I'm not a fan of the big hardcore breakdowns, but, just like everything else, they fit snugly into their respective songs. It sounds like every riff, every beat, and every vocal has been meticulously placed into the perfect spot. Some of this drumming is really outstanding, and I'm loving the complex beats under relatively simple guitar riffs. As far as the lyrics go, Paria falls right in line with many bands of this genre. Most songs are ambiguous, bitter tirades. I've never heard of Dan Brennan at Artery Studios in Omaha, but I'll give the guy some major props for engineering a flat-out brutal album. The guitars have deep, warm sound that I would have expected to hear on more of a hardcore record, but it fits nicely here. I don't have one complaint about this production. Bottom Line: I like almost everything about this record. I can't complain about the lyrics too much, because they are what they are. I could use fewer moshy breakdowns, but they aren't used gratuitously throughout the record. Other than that, I'll have to give this two thumbs way up. I don't feel like Paria is on top of their game quite yet, but this is one hell of a start, and I can't wait to hear more from this band.