This is the the debut album by US extreme metal band Till the Dirt.
Brought to us by the singer of Atheist, Outside the Spiral contains 46-minutes of atypical extreme metal. It has a death metal base, but this is spliced with a few different influences to create something a little outside of the norm.
Till the Dirt’s music takes a death metal foundation and builds on this with materials taken from a range of styles. Across the record you’ll find grunge and alternative metal, thrash, southern sludge rock, and nu-metal, all combined into a progressive extreme metal approach. Despite being released in 2023, it’s a record born of the 90s and 00s for the most part, which is probably at least partially why it resonates with me so much.
Imagine an unexpected mix of bands like Strapping Young Lad, Alice in Chains, -(16)-, Lamb of God, Today Is the Day, Ministry, Floodgate, and American Head Charge, to name but a few of the artists that entered my mind at various points across this record. There’s a lot going on here, yet the songs are surprisingly coherent. Essentially, combine a technical death metal approach with Strapping Young lad’s intensity, then seamlessly blend in Southern metal-tinged guitars and sludge/grunge/alt-metal accessibility. It’s a heady mix that sounds remarkably fresh and infectious, despite the fact that most of the component parts can be traced back to the 90s.
The album is packed with riffs, and the technical skill on display is impressive. Ranging from frenetic and frenzied aggression, to Southern-style heaviness, to crushing groove, and more, this is well-crafted, well-written music that packs a punch that’s more consistent than this review so far might suggest. The vocals range from piercing screams to grunge-esque clean singing, and the music follows. The songs are alternatively jagged and smooth, oscillating between the two to produce a collection of tracks that are very enjoyable to listen to. Assuming, of course, you’re a fan of clashing styles and 90s metal overall.
The music’s mix of extremity and catchiness is great fun. It can be chaotically brutal one moment, and grooving and anthemic the next. I wasn’t expecting to like Till the Soil anywhere near as much as I do, and this is one I’ll be blasting out for a while yet.
Very highly recommended.
Wonderbox Metal 