Misery Index formed out of the ashes of Dying Fetus, who at it's heart was a good death metal band who knew how to get people moving. While earlier works like Overthrow, Dissent, and Retaliation showed some wicked breakdowns and slams, they were more about the grind than anything else. Unfortunately, that all changed with Discordia which showcased a sterile production, longer songs, and an overall generic vibe that we come to expect from relapse death metal. Tendencies that couldn't be forgotten from the slam days of Dying Fetus became more apparent and the music watered down into super cleanly produced death metal metal which a touch of grind. A real shame, as I love Overthrow.
They played two new songs from their upcoming album, and it was much of the same. Slams in between blasting sections and a strong chorus like effort to get people moving. It works well live, as I enjoyed myself, but I can't say I'm too excited for their latest.
Maybe it's because they were picked up by Relapse, a label who's done well putting extreme metal into the market (Baroness, Pig Destroyer, Mastodon, etc) but I don't know how fair that is as Jason and the boys were always accustomed to bigger labels (Nuclear Blast, etc). Whatever the reason is, it's a real shame.
So here's to you, Misery Index, in 2001 you were a better child, and grindcore now, seems to have less of a footing here in America, we can only hope you bring it back someday.
P.S. Yes, Magrudergrind kicked ass. Even though I'm not the biggest fan of their latest but they really tore it up. The energy's still there and I'd gladly see them a hundred times over.
8 comments:
i thought the venue was pretty sweet. I like the intimacy, and its not every place you can crowd surf from the front to the back to the front in one go. granted, im still blowing black shit out of my nose thismorning, but i thought it rocked.
magrudergrind def stole the show, but i also have never really been too big a fan of misery index. too processed and generic i suppose.
ps - love the blog!
I get to see this tour at the end of March. STOKED
can somebody tell me why i keep getting suckered into buying misery index albums? cuz i feel exactly the same way as you. but like a chump i keep plopping down perfectly good cash on them.
Pre-ordered Discordia and Traitors. Pissed me off. Introduced them to the recycle bin. Done with Misery Index. That sums it up.
I agree, they claimed the new album was "more raw" but that didn't stop the breakdowns. It's absurd how highly those shitty albums are rated on MA, just liking Terrifyer which morons cite as amazing.
Unlike the others here, I'm a huge fanboy of MI. I was suckered in when they released Retaliate and have been obsessed ever since. The band has broad tastes and tries their best to take a bit from each. I'm think that the guitarist Mark who joined on Discordia isn't as much as a grindcore/crust fan as Jason is. The songs that he's authored are much more straight forward death metal. That being said, I'd love to see both Magrudergrind and MI in the same night. I will probably have to settle for some popular death metal band to headline any show MI plays here.
Hello. And Bye.
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