Album Review: Aversions Crown - Xenocide

PR lines such as "thematic fixation on dystopian nightmares and hostile extraterrestrial encounters" don't exactly scream (and in this case, grunt) party music.

Not that these Brisbane bruisers seem preoccupied with such matters. Instead, the eight-string guitar-wielding mob's dissonant deathcore is heavier than Homer's Stone Of Triumph (The Soulless Acolyte). Despite stooping to genre convention and/or slightly tedious bludgeon on more occasions than is typically advisable, flickers of stirring melodies and deft electronic touches indicate a more measured approach to brutality. This tack may afford a fresh dimension to the somewhat dull live show they've delivered in the past. There's evidently room for growth here.