25th January 2021

Review: “The Fatal Flaws of Humankind” by Beyond Extinction

“We have spent hundreds of hours of writing and demoing the record at our homes and practice spaces to create this EP, and it’s the best music we have written to date. Focussing on the concepts of nihilism and the imperfections of the human race, the subject matter of this record has a deep and powerful meaning behind it, even from such young writers.” ~ Jasper Harmer

Officially forming in 2018 in their mid-teens, Essex Death Metallers Beyond Extinction now have the average age of just 17 but one should never judge a book by its cover. Having landed the first punch with “Dunestrider” and supported Cancer Bats in 2019, the ear-splitting single “Broken Throne” then gained much attention in August 2020. Produced, mixed and recorded by Matt Williams at MWAudio and Soundlab Studios and mastered by Grant Berry at Fader that single lit the blue touch paper for, a band known for a live performance that delivers high-end energy and a vicious passion, who can not wait to take to the stage once more.

Setting the standard with “God Complex” which offers dark atmospherics and bone crushing riffs that decimate the weak and separate the wheat from the chaff when it comes to who is going to hit the pit and who is going to stand by and watch, Beyond Extinction should have your attention if they don’t already. The song has a groove that builds tension and keeps a tight flow through some longer instrumental sections between the vicious vocals including that most important “Blegh!” moment before “Apex Predator” takes things in a slower more dirge laden direction. Some creepy buried electronics and vocal distortions that blend the ideas of Zebadiah Crowe with God Complex are tasty while keeping the riffs punchy with Harmer showing off an impressive vocal range for one so young. “Bones Like Branches” continues that slower crush while introducing some menacing dynamics which power it through some headbangable staccato riff sections that have that pre-breakdown power and while it doesn’t have that sense of urgency, it makes up for it with blunt force. Harmer’s storytelling capabilities are on show with “A Face Without Features” that introduces some short bursts of other styles like Black Metal, Deathcore and even Industrial nastiness in places with some brutal riffs and blast beats setting the scene. How can a group so young be making an EP about cold, dead World? Believe it. Beyond Devastation are a shining black light in the darkness of the UK Metal Underground scene [8/10]

Track listing