Nociceptor - Among Insects (2011)

For me this is one of the best albums to have sprung out of the new djent scene so far. It has aggressiveness and energy, but maintains progressiveness and melody.

It seems to be a bit of a mix between Periphery, undermorphine, Devin Townsend and of course Threat Signal (This is their side project). It maintains the now distinctive djent sound that’s becoming so popular on the scene recently, so pretty much every fan of other djent bands will be able to enjoy Nociceptor. However, Among Insects is a fair bit heavier than a lot of the new djent. There is still some clean vocals but significantly less than seen elsewhere, and it’s a lot less of an integral part of the sound, more just in the background for atmosphere. This means that people who’ve been complaining that djent is full of scene kid screamo singers can appreciate it too.

The thing that stands out to me about this album is how engaging it is. However ‘innovative’ the new djent movement is, I find it to have a tendency to become a little repetitive and even boring when, for example, you have a 72 minute Periphery album to slog through. Among Insects has a lot more pace, and it seems to me a lot less obsessed with technicality and more just on making good sounding music (the two aren’t mutually exclusive obviously, but technicality does sometimes tend to hinder the overall sound. Anyone can play fast if they practise, but it takes a master to play well).

The only real flashy guitar solo on the record is on the very last song ‘Angus Mcgillicuddy’, however I don’t see it in this case to be such a bad thing for a djent record to just have one definitive solo on it. I think longer solos on other songs would have actually detracted from the record, unless they could be pulled off with incredible weaving ability to fit with the song seamlessly.

My favourite track off the record is the somewhat curiously named ‘Pornoholocaust’. It showcases the relentless pass of the album, while having in my opinion the best clean section and the best scream section on the album. The afore mentioned ‘Agnus Mcgillicuddy’ is also worth mentioning as the most progressive song on the record.



7/10


DOWNLOAD THE ALBUM HERE

1. Intro
2. The Fell
3. Emergence
4. Botfly
5. Mollusk
6. Pornoholocaust
7. Cuntagion
8. Angus McGillicuddy