Unreal Overflows - Slaves Of The Inhuman Future World

It has been a bit of time, but Prog Tech Death duo Unreal Overflows is back with another futuristic concept entitled “Slaves Of The Inhuman Future World.” With a title like that one knows that this album is probably going to be dense and loaded with engaging moments rather than going the more basic ‘bash and blastbeat route’ that more Brutal or Slam Death bands tend to go. For those who don’t know this group has been around since 2001, but didn’t really start getting traction until 2006. It has been about 7 years since their last release, and still holding strong on Great Dane Records, the duo present another bouncy, yet heavy album. For those who like a mix of “Symbolic” era Death and bands like Children of Bodom without the keyboards or Cynic will enjoy Unreal Overflows very much.

The lineup is still consistent with Zoilo Unreal handling most of the instrument and vocal duties while Diego Besada also handles guitar. Listeners will definitely hear the Death influence and Cynic in the way the riffs and structured as well as the vocals as they have that higher pitched snarl that tends to stay the same, and while the opening ‘Echoes from the Past’ doesn’t have that freight train impact like other Tech Death bands tend to like to lead up with like Cognitive, it is definitely clear that Unreal Overflows like to make their guitar work the star of the show. Both members play well off each other and even the bass gets tons of time without getting buried in the zealous solos, but the solos are what really help bring out the Melodeath influences in the work and hone in on the likes of anywhere from Children to Soilwork. While some of the structures tend to bounce back and forth, this roller coaster of a song is sure not to bore. Other tracks like ‘Tearing the Layers of Reality’ have more Melodeath touches to them than Death Prog, but the main riffs like so many in the other song have that bounce to them that just make one nod their head. Even during the jazzy bass parts. While it may not seem like Unreal Overflows never really takes off on the speed level compared to the likes of others such as Horrendous, their mid paced speed and tones are quite accessible and leave nothing to be missed.

The Prog Death elements inspired by Death seem to saturate most of the 2nd half of the album. Listeners will recognize those jarring, yet enjoyable riffs as the album continues to focus on more of a Thrash groove grab compared to the solos that were rather dazzling on the first half, such as on a track like ‘Visage of Betrayal.’ Others like ‘Against Our Will’ are more balanced between Tech Death styled solos, jazz laden bass, and even some speedy moments, bringing some of the better Prog Death out of the band, but it is when the bass has that percussive hum that backs the riffs that makes the song really interesting as it is something different from the band at this point. While the drums are pretty consistent, they don’t really get much of a ‘moment’ to really stand out on the album, but there is also no moment where they feel out of place but rather that perfect background support to the guitars and vocals. It is also fun to note that for once the bass seems to get put before the drums and without the blistering speed that they can actually be heard most of the time, especially on the closing ‘Longing for Silence’ which feels like one has that rumble in their ears all the way through the song as opposed to the bursts that pop up every once in a while (usually before or after the guitar solos) on the earlier tracks.

“Slaves Of The Inhuman Future World” might be a bit of a mouthful and intimidating, but overall listeners will find Unreal Overflows’ style of Prog Death quite accessible. It might not have the clean vocals or spacey sci fi keyboards or samples or jazzy saxophone solos to get the point across, but the duo’s use of guitars/ bass, drums and vocals shows how Death Metal can be thoughtful and quite enjoyable to listen to as opposed to anthemic bludgeon mosh serenades. There are some anthemic driving tracks here but most of them consist of ’stop and go’ frenzy like ‘Averse to Cration’ or the bass bounce to ‘Consumed by Himself’ which is uplifting in a Melodeath sense and can turn on a dime to driving Prog Death riffs while keeping listeners engaged rather than confuse them sometimes like when Opeth on earlier albums go from furious Death Metal and growls to lulling acoustic interludes and soft singing. Unreal Overflows may have a bit of back and forth with their music which makes them predictable at times, but it is still very fun to listen to, even if one cares about the concept of the album or not.   
 
4 / 5 STARS