END – The Sin of Human Frailty (Closed Casket Activities)
Friday, 20th October 2023
Sometimes it matters not whatever the band description is in terms of its subgenres, so much as just knowing that they are capable of bringing the heavy. The supergroup END proved last time around that they could make songs as abrasive as anyone else out there in the extreme community, and that truly is the bottom line. If you are looking for something that can peel the paint off of your walls when you crank it through the speakers, and not sound like every other band out there, The Sin of Human Frailty needs some of your undivided attention.
The first thing that stands out in the band’s arsenal is the HM-2 pedal usage. END sound absolutely filthy, in the best way possible, and when they dig into the caustic grinding moments or the hardcore-inspired breakdowns, you are absolutely going to feel it in your chest. The guitar tone is suffocating as they buzz through blazing speeds on the opening cut, “A Predator Yourself,” and somehow manage to not make the song feel like it’s just noisy for the sake of it. The merging of the hardcore elements, industrial effects, and viscous death metal makes you just shout, ‘Jesus that was heavy!’ The follow-up in “Gaping Wounds of Flesh” is even better, as the snarling blasts of grind mix playfully with some more progressive rhythms, then heaving you directly into an absolutely pulverizing breakdown that’s enhanced by the industrial pounding as much as it is the HM-2 pedal abuse.
Moments of gentle melodies, such as the beginning to “Embodiment of Grief,” help to keep things from getting too one-note, as do the noodling ones later on in the song. But it’s the final track that really shows the band flexing some surprisingly muscles in “Leper.” While it stays in line with the scorching assault of the previous tracks, there’s a level of underlying melody to the madness that really stands out over the course of the 5-minute track. More progressive and daring melodies weave into the heavier and darkly atmospheric sections, giving it a very eerie mood to the grimy bits of aggression. Just don’t think the band ready to turn over a new leaf yet, as one of the album’s most burly sounding breakdowns chugs and slugs its way to the finish line in the most punishing route available.
Bludgeoning riffs, scathing melodies, and pulsating industrial atmospheres come together to create some impressively destructive music on The Sin of Human Frailty. END feels entirely corrosive, yet finds a way to keep it memorable at the same time without compromising their aggression. Perfect for when you want something that’s just heavy as hell.
