Autocatalytica

The debut album from Boston based me(n)tal patients Autocatalytica is almost beyond description. If you pick a dichotomy, light/heavy, fast/slow, stable/unstable for example, it will apply to this record.

Each track will hit you like a wall of sound at times. Opener ‘Oxygonical‘ jams in with dissonant, droning feedback before it slaps you in the face with some inhumanly fast drumming. It is an utterly glorious mess of riffs upon riffs, stabbing rhythms and rasping, unhinged vocals. Comparison between Autocatalytica and Dillinger Escape Plan have been made in past and while they’re right to a certain extent, this doesn’t quite capture how disparate some of the elements are. Think Mutation with some of the flair of Kvelertak and you aren’t even in the right sport, let alone ballpark.

The fantastically named ‘Thunder Squirrel‘ is a slowly building, multi-layered affair with some excellent drum fills and a more standard rock riff anchor that gives you something to grasp onto before you’re carried away by a messy breakdown that gives way into a clean guitar, jazz influenced section.

‘Russian Pharmaceuticals‘ instantly drops in hard before pulling back into a creepy section with lashings of cymbal shimmer, a funky riff building over the drums that then morphs into tar-thick, sludgy chords. There’s some blurry, dizzying guitar soloing and a focus more towards the vocals, with some interesting cleans and some death metal inspired growls. ‘Dweller on the Threshold‘ is a different beast from any of the previous, with a more mid-tempo, doomy, euro-metal focused tint that gives way into some vulnerable and uplifting vocal and guitar melodies, with touches of lush acoustic work.

Overall, it’s the latter track and ‘Toxic Rodent Waterfall‘ (wtf, honestly) that really stand out. The closing track runs with a nice, bass heavy groove and some really well executed vocal harmonies. There’s an uplifting tone throughout, even with all the balls-out heavy, and it is simply fantastic to listen to.

Make no mistake, this is not an accessible album. There is precious little for the casual listener to grab onto, and Autocatalytica fucking well like it that way. For the more discerning fan, this is pretty vital, energetic and rewarding stuff. Be warned, however, this is the sound of madness distilled. - Hit The Floor

One of the most gleefully demented bands to emerge from the US in years, Autocatalytica are about to rip the world of heavy music a new clown-shaped butthole with their self-titled debut album and we are delighted (and slightly scared) to be able to offer a free download of one of its most twisted tracks.

Fans of The Dillinger Escape Plan, Between The Buried And Me and Converge will almost certainly fall in love with this band: check out Heavier And More Melodic right now and then, if you feel so inclined, head to autocatalytica.bandcamp.com and download the whole damn album for a measly $5 (that's about £3.50, we think).

Let the insanity commence! - Metal Hammer

In the beginning there was chaos. Total utter chaos. Pools of blazing fire everywhere. Twisted sounds of unpredictable impact, like all the souls in hell together were screaming with all their agony, little private symphonies, so that the world above can hear them. The ground trembles, fiery winds sweeping over rotten earth and no matter where and no matter how far you look, no shelter, no help, no place to rest in sight.

This is what the self-titled debut of AUTOCATALYTICA from Brookly, NY sounds to me. It is the musical equivalent of a painting from dutch renaissance painter Hieronymus Bosh. It is weird. It is sick. Disturbing. It is strangely alluring and it is hard to get in one sitting – there is just too much going on. Your are confronted with this wall of sound, that has so much different components and there is a lot of interesting things going on, but it is hard to concentrate on one. First, you have screeching Guitars. Than, chaotic, and fast drums, underlined with a rumbling bass; and over that, brutal and crazy vocals that alternate between screams of mere insanity and beautiful melodies. The first song Oxygonical, for example, has a really catchy melodic chorus, that comes unexpected out of this maelstrom of guitars and drums. The second song Thunder Squirrel has a similar effect on me, but surprises with a very short part that offers serenity. Overall, the record knows how to surprise.

They definitely were inspired by bands like Meshuggah on some parts, but they take it one step further, they risk more, explore every inch of the metal landscape. There are choruses and melodies that remind me strongly of Blind Guardian in their more epic phase. This mix of chaos and operesque melody reminds me also of Devin Townsends work. But, as I said, AUTOCATALYTICA takes it one step further. I don’t know if this is better or not, but it is definitely interesting. The problem is, that this bulk of sounds and themes requires a lot of attention to detail and a meticulous arrangement. Don’t get me wrong, I like that record, but the production does not do justice to the musical vision, in my eyes. - 2800 Degrees