Style: Deathcore (Harsh vocals)
Review by: Chris
Country: Spain
Release date: September 15, 2020
I’ve begun wondering if the term technical-x for genres is getting too overused at this point. Counteractt from Spain promote themselves and their new record Universal Sadness as technical deathcore, and while it has elements of that I don’t think it really got me all the way to agreeing with that sentiment. What I think we’ve really been given here is a decently good deathcore album with some technical elements.
Universal Sadness does open like a technical album on “Natum” with its pipe organ melody and video game style choir stabs, and the intro of “A Voice of Confusion” also lends to the high paced frantic tremolos so prevalent in the style. However, the first section directly after with the introduction of the vocals gives a better indication of what else is to come. Triplet chugged palm mutes coupled with repeated high note phrases underneath paint a familiar breakdown background for the very deathcore vocals to start taking reign. “A Voice of Confusion” really does give a good overview of the album, constantly bringing itself back and forth between these familiar -core style breakdowns (though I’ll admit, these are pretty heavy even for the genre) and also familiar melodic guitar lines with the usual blasting drums underneath.
“Death in the Abyss” does have a nice development of a theme throughout the song; the intro somewhat clean moody chord arpeggio is then immediately worked back into a sequence of riffs, each pushing closer to what they came from before fully embracing the full breakdown version of the intro. I think this was the song I liked the most because it did a really good job developing and innovating on the original song theme, which is a bit refreshing compared to the riff rollercoaster some bands turn into these days. On “Nocturnal Pollutions” Counteractt flirt a bit with a couple much more djent-esque tones and breakdowns, which I will fully admit are not really for me but are in no way bad or out of place. The final track “Universal Sadness” has a great back 2 minutes with a ravaging blasting section with an abundance of chord layers before turning into a more chord based breakdown and legato tremoloed solo outro, which will always win me over.
The performances are all standard fare, which is to say they are pretty much prefect on the grid and cleansed to a mechanical degree. I think there are a few times where the snare reverb on the more spacious parts is almost comical, but it helps add to the cavernous effect. The vocals are well performed and sound great and sit right where they should. On some gear I found the mix a bit muddy in the kick range of frequencies but it was nothing detrimental. I did wish that the pipe organ from the intro had peeked its head out more, as I think that almost symphonic element would belong nicely on a few of these tracks and help differentiate this album more from the huge sea of colleagues it has.
Overall a pretty good album, but much more a good deathcore than a technical deathcore album. The intro track had gotten my hopes up for something different than what I got I think, though I wasn’t disappointed by what I got. If you like those nasty deathcore vocals and squeals and a good breakdown or 15, along with a few well placed technical detours, this would be right up your alley.
Recommended tracks: A Voice of Confusion, Death in the Abyss, Latheratus
Recommended for fans of: Shrine of Malice, Distant, older Chelsea Grin
Final verdict: 7/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
Label: Independent
Counteractt is:
– Luis Carlos Silva (vocals)
– Ismael Brasero (guitars)
– Javier García (guitars)
– Kevin Sanz (bass)
– Juan Joel López (drums)
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