Vein – errorzone


If you haven’t heard Boston natives, Vein, you have been missing out. The experimental Hardcore they produce sounds like something you might have heard a decade ago but they deliver it their own, current way. With only an EP under their belt, their debut full-length, errorzone (Closed Casket Activities)comes through with all the grit and metal grace you want from a Hardcore act.

Lead single, ‘virus://vibrance‘ sets the album off with discordant drum fills and a gritty bass line setting the tone for the rest of the album accordingly, sounding alike without being a repeat offender. The unusual and off-key chords found in ‘old data in a dead machine’ fit in nicely with the percussion and the clean quality between the two tempos create a heavy characteristic that makes the album that much more likable and memorable.

The gloom sets in with ‘rebirth protocol’ and the aggression is toned down a bit, but still with sufficient bite to keep you intrigued. ‘anesthesia’ is an interlude that veers off with the similar tone – giving balance to the percussion line that comes in accurately and fitting nicely with the chugging effects that can only be found in the genre.’demise automation’ delivers almost two minutes of raw, alternative tempos that come full force in a short span of time and ‘doomtech’ is a banger as groovy riffs make up the alluring background, easy to melt into the clean vocals as the melody rides the song into a dramatic ending.

At just under a minute, ‘untitled’ wants to make sure you are focused and ready for what comes next; the effortlessly changing in tempos of ‘end eternal’ and ‘quitting infinity’, songs that magnetically pull you.

Vein twist arrangements into unexpected song structures, as they re-configure the structure of Math Rock, Metalcore, and, simply, Metal. Extreme pulses of noise and rhythm here are logical, instrumentally the tracks are savage, vocally complimenting the bloodthirsty elements that they have reintroduced to the genre, all meaning it will be a big surprise if errorzone doesn’t make the Album of the Year lists.

9.0/10

CYNTHIA JO