I am a huge fan of anything that melts my face off and intimidates my guitar playing abilities. I’m always on the hunt for bands that sound different and have unique quirks to their sound. Well kids, we have a winner right here:

The Faceless – Planetary Duality (2008)

So, I’m not going to do this review like everyone else does on the entire Internet. I’m not going to break down each song and go over how each note sounds different from the last. No shit? Listen, everybody enjoys different things…

Things I like

• Guitarists’ tone/ability
• Random vocal melodies in places you’d not expect
• Drummer’s rabid, blistering kick drum skills.
• Sound quality
• The vocal effects that sound like Decepticons from Transformers
• Poptarts

Things I Don’t Like

• Drummer in the mix a little too loud at times
• Too damn short for an album, I want more!
• This album feels a little overproduced for this genre
• Pickles on my McDonald’s cheeseburger

There, now you know. If you enjoy the technical/death metal sound and are into science fiction and fantasy lyrics, you absolutely need to listen to this at least once. This is a quality album.

I’d like to say thanks to Metal Matt at Hot Topic for bringing this CD to my attention. Kudos!

Tracks

1. Prison Born
2. The Ancient Covenant
3. Shape Shifters (Instrumental)
4. Coldly Calculated Design
5. Xenochrist
6. Sons of Belial
7. Legion of the Serpent
8. Planetary Duality I (Hideous Revelation)
9. Planetary Duality II (A Prophecies Fruition)

Total time: 29min and a few seconds.

Members:

Michael Keene “Machine” – Guitar

Demon Carcass – Vocals

Brandon Griffin – Bass

Steve Jones – Guitar

Lyle Cooper – Drums