bartosso Clones, clones everywhere...

I don't know why this particular dead end of a style is so crowded, but I guess it's because of its "cool factor". Djent sounds cool, no doubt about it. I remember myself setting my jaw after it dropped on my first listen of CATCH 33. Let's be honest though, the style created by Meshuggah is very limited and it won't evolve any further.

That's why there are bands that combine djent with more accessible sub-genres of metal, ambient or other non-metal genres... but some of them don't combine it with anything. Uneven Structure was one of those bands when they recorded 8. In short, their EP sounds like a stepped-up CATCH 33. It features the same brooding atmosphere, themes and sound production and the only thing these two bands don't have in common is the quality of being brilliant. Don't get me wrong, 8 is a well executed and well recorded album. It sounds more like a mindless tribute than an independent work of art, though. And by "mindless" I mean painfully repetitive and devoid of any innovative elements.

The biggest advantage of 8 is that it's not mathcore, a genre that some people consider intolerable (who could that be?). Still, it's neither catchy nor innovative so if you look for something that sounds like a bunch of bonus tracks from CATCH 33, then go ahead and get it.