It is true there is not much of a hardcore metal scene to be spoken for in Murfreesboro outside of reclusive shredders scaling around in their garages. That’s one of the only things that makes the newest release from Nashville’s Ancients out of We Are Triumphant Records titled The Lyra Particle as exciting as it gets so far this summer for our progressive metalcore-at-heart. Released on the first day of June this year, the sextet, mainly focused on front man Clint Gee’s muttered vocals and Corey Quinlan’s neck-bending scale fingerings that intertwine over the standard, steadfast and mathy heavy metal rhythm base of Cody Guthoerl’s and Micheal Chadwick’s rhythm guitars, all loosely held together throughout the album’s six tracks by Brent Terebinski on bass and Blaze Blake on drums.
The outstanding aspects of The Lyra Particle lay within the lyrics themselves—better understood in written form—and the production value, as all the songs were tweaked post-recording, giving most of them a borderline electronica/industrial feel with a few cliché eccentricities here and there during the intros and song transitions.
Starting off, the title track holds up as an instrumental sampler for the following five with an intro of spiraling, ambient guitar chimes and minimalist spiraling bass in a quick fugue of scratch shred rhythm guitar, almost a mechanical drumming and prolonged upper-register licks from Quinlan before Gee introduces his beautiful death scream that punches the unsuspecting listener in the temple within the first two seconds of the following track, “Self-Reflection.”
“10%” steps up next as an electronica metal with a call-to-action theme stating only you can prevent the apocalypse whereas the final track, “Anima Mundi,” explores more of an industrial metal with a call-to-action theme that you can save yourself after listening to this album. The catchiest track stands as mid-EP’s “The Breeze of Immunity.” It’s the slow song of the album, holding the best scream out of front man Clint Gee’s neck, and protesting lyrics pertaining to the status of our corporate backed government leading the US’s name through unreasonable wars. Don’t let the “slow song” description throw you off, though. There’s a good-sized double-time refrain that keeps the head bobbing and eyes wide with metal rage.
Good and sometimes noble parts can be found within the six-track EP, but it’s still a jumbled mess of an album. That’s just what comes with the territory, though.
Ancients’ The Lyra Particle EP is available on Bandcamp (where the lyrics are posted, as well). Also, band videos are set up on YouTube, and updates for live shows are posted on their Facebook page.
