The Reptilian come with little to no notice. The Michigan band has been around for almost 4 years now with only a handful of releases. Taking a page from the older school of angular screamo similar to current bands such as Touche Amore and La Dispute. Focusing more on feeling than just sounding "nice". The four piece keep each song moving along in brief bursts with slight clean melodies followed by angular distorted riffs to change things up from time to time.
The vocals definitely stick out on this record. Being more throaty than most of their contemporaries. The nearly guttural nature of the vocal style makes for a more nasty sounding product. This also helps to bring a certain heaviness to the songs that generally isn't concentrated on by the instrumental parts. The guitars, in general, stay pretty clean sounding. While they tend to make alot of noise this is done by making angular riffs rather than distorting them. This allows for each other instrument to come through in every song. Even at their most energetic they still remain clean and open to off kilter near melodies. The rhythm section is truly where the instrumental sections shine. The bass is played with slight distortion allowing it to rumble behind the guitars like a trucker staying just a little too close to your car's bumper. This bring a heavier quality to each song. When it is taking center stage in the mix is where it shines. Allowing the song to feel more climactic and menacing while not changing the main riffs. The drums are played as though the drummer is just about falling over by the time the song is over. The songs, even with this quality, are played with an efficiency that belies the chaotic nature of the rhythms. The drums slow down from time to time to make so the record comes in waves allowing nuances to be put into each song. This allows for a more emotional resonance to be felt with the course of the record.
The production is pretty spot on for this style. While nothing is too clean there is nothing grimy or nasty about it either. The Songs are felt by the listener as the bass is put higher into the mix than most rock albums. This not only helps the songs sound tougher but also gives them a bit of nastiness that would otherwise be lost. This is an upcoming band that deserves your attention as an up and coming band.
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