Seeker – Loss (Victory Records)

Friday, 7th October 2016 By Katarina McGinn

Rating: 8/10

High-energy acts within the extreme genres often face a difficult decision. That being whether to go full-throttle from start to finish and make things (sometimes) blur together and keep the energy dialed up, or toss in atmospheric/melodic elements and lose a piece of their abrasive core. Both can be advantageous depending on the act in question, and Seeker definitely leans towards the former rather than the latter.

A real musical firecracker so to speak, Loss is relentless in its vision to pummel the listener. Expect no holding back or injections of sweetened melody as the album barrels along. But it uses its short runtime (26 minutes) as ample reason to keep things uncompromising – the album comes in, hits hard, and leaves before you start to overthink things. The band’s brand of thrash, hardcore, crust, and death metal seem an effective mix with these short, ripping tracks. “Submit,” “Throat,” and “Rot” represent the more caustic side of the band well – quick bursts of adrenaline with riffing that are nothing short of violence-inducing, complete with some varied snarls that keep the impact and intensity high. But the band does slow down from time to time, but don’t think that it reduces the adrenaline. Instead, longer tracks like “Swallowed” and “Empty Vessel” use downtrodden riffs that almost veer into dissonant territory to keep up the feeling of an overwhelming assault. They do a good job of breaking up what would otherwise be a blurred experience, and give the album some layering that helps in terms of longevity.

Those in the mood for a pure adrenaline rush will have no trouble getting behind Seeker’s latest. Loss is oppressive in all the right ways – brutal riffs, menacing shouts, blistering drums, and short enough that it doesn’t outlast its welcome.