Weston Super Maim – See You Tomorrow Baby
Release Date: 15th March 2024
Label: Self Released
Bandcamp
Genre: Mathcore
FFO: Meshuggah, Car Bomb, Frontierer.
Review By: Jeff Finch
Mathcore is fun; the utter chaos of the music pummeling listeners at every step, songs that seemingly have no rhyme or reason for existing or continuing as they do, yet captivating and heavy enough to come back for more, it’s certainly not a genre for everyone, one that can get exhausting and hard to follow, but one that undoubtedly brings about some of the heaviest and most technical music on the planet. Today’s focus, Weston Super Maim, seems to have all of that under control and, with this new release, See You Tomorrow Baby, the group is ready to destroy everything in its path, a controlled demolition that gives very little room to escape.
When thinking of bands this technically sound, such as legendary stalwarts Meshuggah, the most instantly recognizable aspect is those down tuned chugged riffs, and this record has no shortage of those blistering caveman chugs, interspersed with such technically ferocious drumming and visceral vocals that at a mere 40 minutes, this record can be described as both exhausting and exhilarating. Time signature changes are performed with such precision and attention to detail that one can be forgiven for not realizing that any shift has occurred, as the sonic maelstrom pummels from virtually any and every direction, main single Autistic Kill Trance a perfect example: not even thirty seconds into the song, the snare has been obliterated, the guitars have chugged low, chugged high, we’ve been hit with blast beats, and, one of the cooler aspects of some of the songs, there’s laser noises straight from the 80s, just adding another element of chaos to an already improbably insane opening. A brief reprieve about midway through the song gives us listeners an opportunity to simply breathe, as the sheer volume of notes and noise for the first couple of minutes is enough to make even the most seasoned listener need a pause, lest the notes get jumbled together in a Mathcore mishmash.
One of the most insane Mathcore bands on the planet, Frontierer, makes an appearance here in the form of their lead vocalist Chad Kapper, who lends every ounce of his vocal cords to track Perfect Meadows in Every Direction: the longest and final track on the album, it’s the perfect amalgamation of what the band can do; slow caveman riffs open the track before an aural onslaught of time signature changes and bat-shit crazy melody, all building up to brief pause right before the band slows down and obliterates with oppressively heavy syncopated riffs that blend back into the main rhythm. The entire song works in this capacity, brutally heavy segments broken up with brief respites of calm, enough to give listeners the opportunity to refocus before the next portion of the song comes back with a right hook from hell. Among these opportunities to refocus is a section near the middle of the track, rife with melody and clean guitar over inhumanly dense feedback, lost in a fog but slowly finding our way out as the riffs come back into play slowly, pace increasing slightly for the remainder of the song, effectively a new song in its own right, the heaviness never relenting but the pace a controlled exercise in restraint, that clean guitar melody always hovering in the background of the beatdown riffs, as they gradually quiet down, and we fade to black, that prolonged note not leaving until the clock strikes zero.
As alluded to prior, there are moments in this album that are truly standouts; the laser noises from Autistic Kill Trance make appearances throughout the album, and the blistering solo in The Bare Maximum, courtesy of Ian Waye of the band Soreption, is a welcome addition to the unadulterated heft of the remainder of the album, the quick burst of melody and intensity an excellent way to break up any monotony and segue back into the hugely searing groove.
And it’s here where we can take the time to talk about the elephant in the room: just how heavy this album is and what it does to a listener. Much like those from their cohorts Frontierer or Car Bomb, this album is so full of noise, notes, and unfettered ferocity, that it is a truly exhausting experience, enjoyable though it may be. Each song taken in a vacuum is an exquisite display of musicality and heaviness, but when taken all as one, the album is brutally heavy and, at times, hard to focus on. I’ve had this particular issue with Frontierer and Meshuggah, where, taken in sprints, the album is the perfect blend of chaos, heavy, and melody, but when attempted in a marathon consumption, the unique nature of each track is lost in the maelstrom. This is to be expected with Mathcore, sure, but it still doesn’t remove the fact that even those that love the genre might be tempted to pause the album halfway through, only to come back later, simply to have time to digest.
Having said all of that, this newest release from Weston Super Maim does what it set out to do: pummel. There’s no doubt that the band went into this wanting to maintain that heft and have its listeners come out with their hair dishevelled, their clothes tattered and torn, and their ears ringing from the virtually non-stop assault on their senses. And you know what? They did it. Any fan of Mathcore will undoubtedly enjoy this record, so there’s no reason to not listen. Let the chaos overtake you and just enjoy the roller coaster of bedlam while it lasts.
(4 / 5)
