The Psyke Project

The Psyke Project have been terrorizing the metallic hardcore scene since the mid 00s. With their albums steadily increasing in quality, and considering that the quality has been set quite high even with their debut album, Samara that really means something here. The dark sound of the band came into full realization with their sophomore album, Daikini while their utter chaotic self was revealed in Apnea. Their previous album, Dead Storm, show the band maturing, constantly improving their work. And they continue to do so with their newest effort, Guillotine.

Even though The Psyke Project gather influences from different genres from the most distant corners of extreme music, their sound does seem like it just comprises of moments where each different genre is represented. It is instead a concise and coherent end product where the sludge influences tie in perfectly with their black metal self, with all that being built on top of their dark hardcore basis with a hint of a post metal aftertaste (and I mean the heavy post metal bands.)

The blackened post metal/sludge/hardcore sound that Psyke Project bring forth is dark, uncompromising, extreme and brutal while it manages to also retain traces of emotion and ambiance. Their black metal influences contribute greatly to the bands chaotic sound, something that becomes obvious from the very start of the album, when the title track kicks in. Their blackened hearts reveal themselves in a plethora of moments, with the most impressive one being in the first half of “Empire,” coming in after the drone/sludge interlude, “The Mute,” seems like it is setting ablaze the bands sound.

Obviously their dark hardcore sound is the basis of The Psyke Project, prevalent in most of their tracks, from the insane “Good for Nothing,” with the band destructive concept coming out with full force. While in tracks such as the more old school hardcore punk fueled, “Ghost Fight,” The Psyke Project show a much more in you face attitude and with an unreal groove to it as well. At the same time, any fan of slow, filthy and heavy music, e.g. sludge, will tremble like a leaf in front of the “being hit with a shovel across the face” sound of “Partisan.” The pure weight of the track is unreal, you need to hear it to experience in full the devastation that it spreads. The band offers a variety of such moments, another one being the closing track of the album, "Menneske."

There is not one dull moment in this album. From the first second until the end, The Psyke Project manage to keep the same level of intensity and energy. Even when the interludes appear, the minimalistic drone/sludge of “The Mute” and the beautifully melodic “When Man Becomes God,” the interest of the listener is kept intact. This is an album that you will not get bored of easily, and one that you will feel the urge to listen to again and again. That is until your soul becomes as dark as The Psyke Project’s music.

9.0 / 10 — Spyros Stasis