Beyond The Void - The Machinist

France’s Beyond The Void are relatively new to the Death Metal scene having formed in 2018 but not really gaining any traction until their first EP in 2020. Now they have their first full length debut entitled “The Machinist” and it sounds strong, ferocious, and a mix of well produced Technical meets Modern Death Metal. With touches of Suffocation, Deicide, and even groups like Cognitive, listeners will appreciate the guitars and pounding drums among the guttural vocals that is the perfect storm of what Death Metal should be. While Beyond The Void don’t quite bring anything new to the table, the album does have some stand out tracks that will garner plenty of attention.

After the brief instrumental ‘Prelude To The Storm’ listeners can dive in deep to the groove and ferocity of a track like ‘Hymns of Annihilation’ with its Dying Fetus esque grooves and yet very easily paced chugs and rhythms. New vocalist Cyril Cozza sounds clear, aggressive, and beastly behind the mid while the backing rhythms from guitarist Antione Grasser (also of solo Tech Death Ars Notoria fame) and also from Antione Bieber (with hopefully no relation to Justin Bieber) lay down the whirlwind of technical and jazzy guitar work while Maxime Le Corre pounds on the kit. Bass work from Laurent Schmitt is a little lost but on a track like ‘Mother Earth’ or ‘If You Had Been Me’ the bass is more prominent and jazzy, much like a Beyond Creation track. Guitar chugs are a little more rhythmic and less technical, but the groove is still there as Beyond The Void aims to make their music catchy and memorable. For those who enjoy the likes of ‘slowed down’ Necrophagist with the jarring guitar ‘Among the Ruins…’ is a slow to mid paced crawl of churning Death Metal again with some strong bass work backed by the melodic guitar work. Despite the controlled ferocity, it sounds like Beyond The Void never quite go fully guttural or brutal in the vein of Hate Eternal or Cannibal Corpse, so fans of that raw, guttural old school form might not enjoy this as much. However, the band can show their faster moments (especially with the drumming) on a track like ‘Maruta’ where the guitar solos are stronger, the pace is more frantic, and yet the technicality is still intact. A bit more Deicide on this one, the groove and speed is certainly more Brutal Death Metal vibe along with the layered vocals.

Overall, “The Machinist” plays well throughout, emulating that perfect mix of brutal meets technical like the album cover demon playing around with the strings of man. It isn’t dizzying like Archspire but nor clunky like Six Feet Under or some of the other more groove oriented Death Metal Bands. Think a less guttural Suffocation meets a meatier Deicide with touches of Beyond Creation. Production is clear so nothing is lost, and while some of the tracks may blend together a bit, it is hard to pick out any really failing track. A strong debut that should sit well with anyone who enjoys Death Metal produced in the early 2000s and after.

3.5 / 5 STARS