Time Signature Two in one...

Genre: prog/tech death-thrash

Granted, CB Murdoc sounds more like the name of a late 80s second rate glam metal band, but, make no mistake, this Swedish sixtet play fierce death-thrash which teems with evil and brutality.

And they make this very clear right from the explosive opening of the very first track which features a brutal death metal-style riff and blastbeating drums. Adding to the overall intensity that characterizes the album, a track like 'Patch' feature both dissonance and more post-hardcore styled riffage, while "Two In One" is an all out raging thrasher.

But, CB Murdoc is not all about brutality. In fact their brand of death-thrash is quite technical and even progressive, as they often go off into rhythmically complex passages and mind-boggling breakdowns. Their style is slightly djent-informed and also includes some elements that you might recognize from metalcore. However, before the djentophobes and metalcorophobes go running back to mamma, I should point out that these elements are far from dominant, and that they are included into CB Murdoc's overall quite eclectic style, which also includes post-metal, sludge-metal, death metal and even a slight jazzy feel.

The overall eclectic approach often results in what appears as a chaotic sound, but in this case, it is a positive feature, because it does not sound forced and there still is a sort of natural dynamics to the song structures. Just check out tracks like 'Changeling', 'Adore', and 'D.I.D.'.

Needless to say, the musicianship is top notch, and the screamed vocals suit the overall order-from-chaos character of the music on the album. Production-wise, the sound is dark and brutal and has a certain organic feel to it, and it does not sound like it has been overly processed.

Overall, "The Green" is a pretty well put together album which is both aggressive and brutal but also experimental and challenging to the listener in many ways. Fans of prog/tech thrash and death metal should definitely check it out.