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Irreversible Mechanism > Infinite Fields > Reviews
Irreversible Mechanism - Infinite Fields

Let's play some tech... - 78%

Livingwave17, September 15th, 2018

‘Irreversible Mechanism’ is probably the first technical death metal band that I actually liked. The guys are from Belarus and have released this debut in March 2015. The filthy vocals that blame every band in the field are probably what has kept me away from the sub-genre for a while, and they’re present here too, but not quite to the same extent. So I finally found my way into the genre and got accustomed to it. It was about time I gave this band a shout out because they are pretty underrated and they are quite promising.

‘Infinite Fields’ is a savage dose of adrenaline with the potential to cause some pretty serious brain damage. It’s pretty straightforward tech-death stuff so if you listen to this genre a lot you kind of know what to expect. The extreme guitar riffs and ludicrous shreds are probably the centerpiece of the album and the overall apocalyptic atmosphere is what stops it from becoming redundant. You can blame the background synths for this vibe. This isn’t the most original or creative album but it has enough ideas and elements to keep it alive until the end. It’s also a compact 39 minute album so it’s finished before you can start getting bored.

Though also predictable, I have to mention the drum work as a highlight. The double-pedals and blast beats are to blame for the constant grinding that comes at you like a beast and it’s impressive even if you already see it coming. And they also introduce some nice shifts, stops and grooves on the drums to create a really brutal dynamic. The bass tends to follow all these pattern changes on the drums but it’s not always audible because of the mixing that doesn’t really help it out. The sound quality is good but some elements tend to disappear here & there and annoyingly it’s never the vocals. Like I said, I’m not an admirer of the pig squeal department, and Irreversible Mechanism cross that territory more than a few times. I wouldn’t change it too much because the really low grunt matches the style of the album but there isn’t much to say about it though.

Well, this is tech death, so you eat up a lot of really technical stuff from every instrument and you get screamed at a lot. So the attitude that this record comes at you with is showing off quite a lot, but it is for good reason. They really, REALLY know their shit. If you’re going to make an album that wants to kill the listener, you have to equip it properly, so it can do the job right. They succeed to push the limits just far enough to be impressive even for people who know what to expect from tech-death. The comparisons to Fallujah might convince if you don’t want to take my word for it. So despite appearing like a bunch of egotistic teenagers at first, you grow fond of their music after a few spins. On top, they actually have some cool ideas placed in here. The opener ‘Into the Void’ and the title track are probably the best tracks and they give you a lot of ideas and variety compared to the rest of the songs. I also liked what they did at some points in the album where they pan some guitar riffs left and right, and towards the end they give you some nice surprises like the sweeping and synth section in ‘The Betrayer of Time’ or the creepy clean guitar at the end of ‘Cold Winds’.

What really motivated me to check out this album in more detail was the announcement of the second album titled ‘Immersion’ that has just been released and is highly praised by the label as being a lot more mature. So I’m really curious to check that out and to see if the improvement from the debut is as great as the promoters claim. But I’m certainly convinced that the guys have a lot of potential and I do recommend the debut ‘Infinite Fields’.

Enjoy!

Surprisingly good! - 87%

andreipianoman, August 9th, 2017

Irreversible Mechanism is proof that you never know what you might run into. The band name or logo didn't strike me in any way. Nor did the album title or cover artwork. And they're from Belarus so, who even knows what that means? Probably just another useless death metal band right?

Wrong! Since I'm not one to judge without listening I gave it a go. And I had the surprise of my life! I don't even know if I liked it at first but it certainly hit me like a train. A French high speed train! They play really fast almost all the time. There are insane riffs and solos, quad pedals and blast beats and to spice everything up, really creepy orchestration samples. After picking myself up from the trainwreck, I knew I wanted to dig deeper into this stuff.

As it turns out, Infinite Fields has some sort of post-apocalyptic concept. I'm not really sure what it's about since the lyrics don't make much sense to me. And the vocals aren't really my thing. There's just death growls thrown in there so it wouldn't just be instrumental music or at least that's how I see it. So maybe I should stick to the instruments.

This is progressive technical death metal so these guys are really good. The music is speedy and difficult and definitely recorded at a very advanced level. It's very powerful and along with the orchestration, it creates this very dark and morbid atmosphere. It's pretty clear that they managed to get the sound and ambience they were looking for. But what bugs me a little bit is that they keep the same idea and feeling through the entire album and once the last song, "Cold Winds"comes to an end, it really doesn't seem like they were going anywhere with it. So as good as the music may be it seems to just communicate a creepy vibe rather than an idea or a story.

The music though, is very good. And it's even more surprising when you realise that behind that immense sound there are just three people. There have been recorded at least two guitars, the bass and drums are beastly in every possible way and despite all that, the end result is still very melodic thanks to awesome guitar leads and that orchestration. And that's my favorite part of the whole thing. I also really think the sweep sections are worth mentioning.

So there we have it. Infinite Fields is an album that despite being a bit stale and not putting much effort into the concept is definitely a blast to listen to and you should really try it out. I'm honestly quite curious to see what they're going to do next.

Irreversible Mechanism "Infinite Fields" - 83%

Lustmord56, June 29th, 2015

Review originally published at www.teethofthedivine.com by E.Thomas

Symphonics/orchestration and brutal death metal aren’t uncommon bedfellows, but it isn’t exactly a thriving, saturated genre, due to the obvious dichotomy the two style provide. Fleshgod Apocalypse certainly elevated it to critical acclaim and mastered the sound but before that the likes of arguable trendsetters Nocturnus as well as, Agiel, Scrambled Defuncts, Ovid’s Withering and a few others have also been flirting around the curious melding.

Enter Irreversible Mechanism, from Minsk, Belarus and their fine debut Infinite Fields, originally self released but picked up for larger distribution by Finland’s Blood Music. Of interest to US metal fans is the fact that Lyle Cooper, who drummed on the last two The Faceless albums, is the session drummer here giving the duo of Yaroslav Korotkin (bass/vocals), and Vladislav Nekrash (guitars) a little international credibility, but based on their skill and delivery outside of the drums, I’m not sure they needed it.

The backbone is a pretty standard, modern, clinical, widdly, tech death swarm of time changes, stuttering riffs and shrill solos ala Gorod, Obscura etc, and it in itself is pretty well done. But then you throw in full on orchestration and keys- not quite as theatrical or cinematic as Fleshgod Apocalypse, and maybe more sci fi/Nocturnus based (I get a little sense of Pestilence Spheres/Testimony of the Ancients here and there too) and you have an impressive debut from an impressive band.

None of the polished, confident, well played songs completely jump out at you or are commandingly memorable, as if often the downfall of tech death. But if you want deft musicianship and a mechanical sense of precise, brutality sheathed in some Dimmu Borgir-ish (“Incipience”, “The Betrayer of Time”), spacey, orchestrated splendor, then Infinite Fields will serve you well. From “Into the Void” through”Outburst” and the more fierce “The Agony”, to the more controlled closer “Cold Winds”, careen and swirl with cosmic solos abound, shrill blast beats and some stuttering matches and ethereal majesty once in a while to let the keys breathe and swathe you in cosmic light and or/ the glow of a army of robots.

On the negative side, along with the innate genre issues, the album is a bit sterile (but certainly fitting the band’s mileau), with a dry production and monotone deep growls and screams and none of the tracks really peak or command your attention. For example, “Fragile” just really wants to explode like a nova amid its solos and epic keys, it sits on the edge, but never peaks or takes that final leap into something more special. Still though a very promising debut and entry into the genre from a young duo that can only get better.

MeloSymphTech Death - 87%

flightoficarus86, April 3rd, 2015

There must be something in the water in Belarus that is turning a new generation of youth into amazing metal musicians. That whole region of the world is killing it this year, but I think this is the second solid group out of that actual country to have a stellar release in the past two months. Taking the showmanship of technical death metal and presenting it within the aesthetic of melodic and symphonic death, Irreversible Mechanism kicks down the door and pummels the listener to the ground with a sense of class.

The obvious draw for any tech death album are the guitars and drums. Infinite Fields does not disappoint in this department. Pounding double bass and changing time signatures are the norm. Meanwhile, the guitar displays the expected amount of noodling, shredding, and soloing on par with their peers. The difference is that the riffing never sacrifices strong hooks for pure showmanship. Whereas many other tech death acts bore me to tears with masturbatory, a-melodic dick waving; Irreversible Mechanism suck in the listener with a catchiness not unlike Mors Principium Est or Serenity in Murder's most recent albums.

Related to this, and permeating the mix, are the ever-present synthesizers. These cybernetic-sounding additions bring a new level of atmosphere to the album illustrated in the cover art. While the compositions aren't earth-shatteringly innovative; the way that they fuse with the already frenetic, machine-like attack of the other instruments and death vocals is impressive. I was moving with this album from start to finish: banging my head to a strong beat or swaying to a dizzying scale run.

Final word: best tech death album I have heard in a while aside from the post-metal fusions of Ulcerate. More importantly, this is one of a very select few death metal albums that have impressed me in the first quarter of 2015 period. In a year that has been dominated by various flavors of black metal, Irreversible Mechanism are hear to prove that death metal is still relevant to extreme music. Check the album out in full on their bandcamp and pick it up as a name-your-price. Just don't be a mooch. It is every bit worth a few measly dollars.

Enjoyability=9 
Musicianship=9.5 
Innovation=8