PHI

Here is a completely awesome release i chanced upon while searching on the free metal albums blog. 54 doesn't follow any real genre rules thus their tag of extreme progressive metal fits perfectly. This demo mixes many styles (industrial, black, death, and progressive). The only band that comes to mind for a comparison is Arcturus.

The guitar riffs are solid and very catchy not much in the way of lead playing but good throughout. Vocals mix clean singing with death growls and black metal grimness with a touch of processed industrial screaming . Bass is used just for bottom end and the drums have an industrial feel to them.

The songwriting throughout is very well done, short and to the point songs with a very good use of melody and dynamics. The production is great for a demo so good it could have been released as is. The only real problem with this release is the length, much too short, and seeing as this band has now split up it is a shame. I believe given the time 54 could've become one of the best bands in Norway.

Overall a unique and worthy release, you can download it from their site check it out.