Dischordia - Project 19

It’s been a solid amount of time since I have heard anything from Dischordia’s camp. The last thing I had heard from them was their excellent Creator, Destroyer EP back towards the end of 2011. That EP was a really strong 4 track outing and was one of the best EP’s I’d heard that year. It still holds up really well today. Now though Dischordia are here with a whole new beast. Project 19 is a 19 track album technically speaking but truthfully it is 10 tracks with 9 19 second silent tracks to make the album 19 tracks long.

It’s easy to hear influences by numerous bands such as Meshuggah, Gorod, Job For A Cowboy, and Decapitated for starters, but Dishordia’s brand of progressive death metal feels original and is packed with really solid ambiance. The technicality on the album is pretty great and mixes really well with the more melodic elements of their music. ‘When She Saw Him…’ is a great example of this, where the band effortlessly goes from faster more technical work, to a more rhythmic and slower paced chorus, without making it feel jarring in the least.

One thing I loved about Dischorida’s Creator, Destroyer EP was the production everything was crystal clear and sounded top notch. Project 19 for some reason isn’t quite on that level. Something about it feels a little more muddled than before. Although things do feel more raw and natural, so maybe it’s a tone the band was going for rather than over produced. It’s not something that’ll really draw any death metal fans away from this album as it does make it feel more like a Decapitated album in tone.

Another thing I loved about Creator, Destroyer was Josh Fallin’s drum work, and things in that respect have only gotten better. Fallin’s footwork and technical ability is superb. He can provide awesome fills all over the map, but he can also provide some interesting slower work for example a good way into the song ‘Madhouse’, which is not an Anthrax cover by the way but still a great song, there is this slower section accompanied by some acoustic guitars.

‘Madhouse’ is followed by a nice symphonic interlude that adds to the ambiance very well. During this track there is a sound byte of a man talking to himself after waking up and discovering some scary things, while some kind of creature roars in the distance. It’s a cool little change of pace for a minute that doesn’t last too long before we are thrown back into the thick of it with the song ‘Zone Of Perpetual Darkness’.

Project 19 finishes off with a track called ‘There Are No Words’ an aptly named song as it is an Instrumental. This song is a nice way to end the album, with a great performance from each instrument and a final hammering in of their sound. This album doesn’t leave you wanting much more. It’s solid from start to finish and easily calls for repeated listens.