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FAITHXTRACTOR
The Great Shadow Infiltrator

Deathgasm (2013)
Rating: 7/10

The intriguingly named FaithXtractor is a fearsome duo comprised of brothers Ash and Marquis Thomas, and The Great Shadow Infiltrator is their second full-length opus, coming five years after 2008’s Razing The World Of Myth debut hit stores.

The Ohio-based team offer what at first appears to be some type of bewilderingly complex thrash metal if we gaze into the depths of that album artwork, but we couldn’t be farther from the truth.

This is very much death metal played in that guttural old school style that touches upon Swedish influences – particularly in some of the more blazing moments. The deep, phlegm-infested vocals of Ash are formidable though as the band produce an array of extremities, ranging from doomier, sludge-caked arrangements to faster, abrasive waves.

The Great Shadow Infiltrator offers the listener 11 interesting songs that for the most part finds a gap between the grotesque structures of New York’s Immolation and a cleaner Swedish sound with gloomier injections. The Thomas brothers are talented musicians who are able to shift pace at the flick of a switch; one moment the pair pound the senses with hurtling drums and nifty, albeit sombre guitar solos, and then the next moment they create a quicksand process of deep, churning guitars, bass and swampy drums.

When the duo provide more intricate subtleties one could compare the finer elements to bands such as Death mixed with the grey haze of UK death metallers Bolt Thrower, although the vocals are leaned towards the latter of those bands with that earthy, quagmire drool.

Again, FaithXtractor benefit from mixing up the pace – a prime example being the excellent ‘Third And Final’ which features killer, blasting riffs and rampant drums. Yet it then, without effort, removes itself from the faster approach to become a really frothing, chugging downbeat monster of a track.

I certainly wouldn’t be too fooled by the seemingly complex song titles such as ‘The Six Knives Of Redshield’ or ‘Shackling The Long Usurped’, because for the most part this is a straightforward death metal racket. Nonetheless, the music has some nice, dare I say it, original touches and various combinations of other effective styles that have made the genre so punishing.

FaithXtractor could become a cult band who should appeal to fans of both death and thrash metal – after all, my favourite track ‘Freedom Conditional’ is more than happy to lurk in those speedier waters. What the Thomas brothers have done here however is simply craft out a sound that displays intelligence and guile, all the while keeping true to its deathly heart. This is an infectious record with enough hooks to drag you in, and sufficient ever-changing colours to detract one from the occasional forays into gloom.

Neil Arnold

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