Greylotus – Motherwort

In my constant dabbling through the wondrous realm of tech-death, I sure have come across many strange and unexpected sonic apparitions, some more brutal, some more intricate, some more expressive and theatrical, and some seriously weird experimental stuff. While it sometimes can become templated, if you know where to look, tech-death is the genre that just keeps on giving. And one of the most baffling of its many forms must certainly be Greylotus. About a couple of years back they released “Dawnfall” through The Artisan Era, and that album was intense even for a label focused on extreme metal. I wouldn’t call it a favourite, but certainly a shocker that I never quite forgot, and a spectacular accomplishment in technical proficiency.

And now they’re back. In fact, it seems I’ve been sleeping on it for a while because their latest release, “Motherwort” has actually been coming together song by song for a few months now. But maybe I was lucky to be oblivious, because I do enjoy an unspoiled first listen of an album. This one is a 6 track EP summing up half an hour of music, but I promise you, you don’t need more. I don’t remember “Dawnfall” in all the details, but I think this one might be even weirder.

Their sound is exploring the grey area between modern technical death metal and deathcore, and they’re also throwing in hints of djent and black metal, just to make the concoction of extremity as wild as it gets. And they sure like to catch their listeners off guard, kicking off directly with ludicrous guitar leads and disjointed progressive riffage on the first track. Each song is some sort of perpetually shapeshifting Frankensteinian monstrosity, going through the motions of blast beats, frantic riffs, ridiculous leads, complex rhythmic patterns and massive breakdowns, while constantly shifting the tempo, mood and sound textures along the way. It’s a rollercoaster of unpredictable madness, seasoned with soaring epicness, vocal filth, emotional volatility and relentless brutality. Feeling intimidated yet? Good!

Greylotus – Shinkansen

I will admit, on first listen, I felt confused and overwhelmed. Although most of the musical ideas sounded good to me, the bizarre juxtapositions of seemingly unrelated patterns, ideas and emotions left me scratching my head without any conclusion about what on earth I just experienced. After more auditions, some of it starts to make sense. There are multiple layers and parallel musical lines running at the same time, so often a certain switch in the musical flow may only make sense if you’re properly taking everything in. Especially on the second half of the EP, There are many moments when warm lush melodies and dreamy atmospheric soundscapes are forcefully merged into the brutality of the metal elements, so there’s a counterintuitive unity in the full scope of the composition that isn’t immediately apparent, and requires an attentive listener to properly absorb it. On other occasions though, I’m fairly certain that they intentionally put radically different ideas side by side for pure shock. Such is the case near the end of ‘Shinkansen’, when a frantic tech-death section is abruptly interrupted by a muffled atmospheric soundscape, keeping no continuity in melody, sound texture or rhythmic pattern whatsoever, almost like switching to a different song on a whim.

I can give credit to the chaotic songwriting though. It doesn’t take over moment, and if what you’re going for is experimentation and bizarre contrasts then mission accomplished I guess. But my appreciation for “Motherwort” rather comes from the fantastic production work, beautiful melody writing, insane technical skill and a few properly gnarly riffs. I also appreciate that the deathcore moments, like the slowed down breakdowns and de-tuned effects, aren’t anywhere near as generic or predictable as they usually get with deathcore bands. They’re more sophisticated in emotional expression and seem dramatic rather than plainly brutal. Also due to the overall chaotic songwriting, they don’t feel singled out from every other whacky, odd or disturbing shift in pace and energy.

Greylotus – Motherwort

Vocally, it is mostly what you’d expect from deathcore: a lot of filthy growls, high pitched snarling and some hyperactive sections, all delivered with the clarity and articulation of an unholy crossover between Yosemite Sam and Donald Duck. But there are some distorted pseudo clean vocals as well, adding a dimension of emotional fragility and drama. There’s something about overlaying these elements that makes all the brutality in the composition seem even more shocking by contrast. But sometimes it’s also used to dampen the blows and create a somewhat subdued effect. A good example of this is in ‘Pallbearer’, where a clean guitar is allowed to shine past the filthy vocals and riffs, due to excellent mixing and volume balancing.

After a few listens, I feel like I’m starting to make sense of “Motherwort”, and after many more of them, I’d probably get used to it, but it’s by no means an easy listen, and I expect even fans of the brutal arts to struggle a bit with this one. However, I have to give credit where credit is due! The production is spectacular, there are some fantastic compositional ideas and superb melodies as well as impressive rhythmic acrobatics. I just wish it all came together in a more coherent manner.

Track List:

1. Ravine (04:19)
2. The Grip (06:00)
3. Pallbearer (05:08)
4. Shinkansen (04:40)
5. Atelophobia (03:57)
6. Motherwort (06:10)