Review: “Open Me” by No Soul

Recorded, mixed and mastered at Insightful Recordings by Jon Folino in upstate New York, “Open Me” marks the debut album from Rutland Vermont based quintet No Soul who formed in spring of 2016. It’s their second release after 2017’s debut EP “Head Trauma” which was with filler members and an unofficial lineup that has now shifted to solidify with vocalist James Heroux and guitarist Will Ringey joined by bassist Storm Brown, guitarist Adam Thomas Leggett and drummer William Molleur. As anyone who has heard that EP will know, it sounds raw…

…which isn’t how “Open Me” sounds at all. Getting underway with the the foreboding tones of introduction piece “147” that over 56 seconds tells you something is coming before “Delineate” kicks in as a visceral vocal attack that is as savage as they come with Heroux venting some demons. Stylistically the band are Avante Garde Deathcore, pilling brutal staccato riffs on top of each other while this one has a mid track Jazz break with the words “trapped in these walls for days…” before the breakdowns come swinging back. The leads are technical tapping sequences while the pulverizing rhythmic attack is a savage beating second to none. The eclectic nature of this is album then opens up with the programmed “Hierophant” which forms a primitive yet haunting and eerie science fiction horror soundscape that sets up the second brutal attack in “Wishender” perfectly. Circle pit whirlwind riffs tear through your eardrums during the opening segment before a surprise clean vocal verse appears out of nowhere with A Day To Remember sing-a-long qualities before some eerie synths that then drop off into downtempo eight string groove. You might find yourself confused at this point but embracing the complex nature of this beast leads to the ultimate reward, variety is the spice of life. Psycho Killer riffs bring “Droned Grey” home, bludgeoning heavy gauge string tones playing off against razor sharp leads and breakdowns galore reminiscent of Within Destruction. The curve ball comes in the form of a dark synth moment but crucially it doesn’t break to follow, it just enhances the horror.

The second half of the record starts with the pulsating “Love Kills“, a horror story in full gore detail playing out in story telling fashion with Technical Deathcore lead flourishes and a bludgeoning rhythmic groove that is so heavy it brings to mind the likes of Humanity’s Last Breath while throwing in gang chant moments that are made for the live arena. Who else would include the line “I still have your teeth” in a track? Keeping the energy high and the flow brutal, the rap screams of “Goliath (Do You Really Want to Know?)” are intertwined with some brilliant swirling leads while a classic downtempo breakdown for the final third is an absolute skull crusher. Taking a slightly different direction “Wrath” has prominent Hardcore roots as well as those brilliant lead flourishes that raise the hairs on the back of your neck. Heroux has an impressive vocal range, he can do the shriller screams while having some serious black hole depth to his Deathcore growls to the point that if you didn’t know any better, you might say there were two vocalists on cuts like “Dirge“. The spoken word evil of “I beg to differ on the subject of love, Bonded to the end one below one above, You want heavy, you say you want blood, You want fabrication I just want to be enough” is something harrowing while a mid track oddly time signatured break beat passage that has some blast beat moments in it flies in the face of convention in the best possible way. How you manage to shoehorn in another clean vocal verse into something this heavy is like falling upwards and yet breaking into a beautiful haunting icy piano moment at the very end is like lightning flashes during a storm [8.5/10]

Track listing

1. 147
2. Delineate
3. Hierophant
4. Wishender
5. Droned Grey
6. Love Kills
7. Goliath (Do You Really Want to Know?)
8. Wrath (Album Version)
9. Dirge

“Open Me” by No Soul is out now and available over at bandcamp