- advertisement -

FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY
The Nothing That Is
Nuclear Blast

If you stare long enough into the cover image of new opus from FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY, it will either stare back, wink, or become the cover of MASSACRE's From Beyond. Okay, so I may have exaggerated that last bit.

I mean, nothing has gotten better since their last album, and so, titling new outing The Nothing That Is begs the question of whether or not anything has changed with FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY? Thankfully, we can count on death, taxes, and deathcore and more!

The Nothing That Is is a multi-faceted record that shows increments of growth melded tried and true deathcore alchemy, Will Putney once again proving why he is one of the best, and most versatile, artists in the deathcore genre. But, as I have opined, FFOA has transcended deathcore some time ago. Are there breakdowns here and riffs that chug harder than a college freshman trying to impress their friends? Oh yeah. But, as with all later era offerings, The Nothing That Is doesn't simply want to bash your head in. It wants you to be fully aware of what is happening, and take time to examine how these proceedings make you feel, and then it wants to beat you senseless.

Beginning with an excellent one-two punch in the form of lead off tracks "Hostage" and "Spoils of the Horde", The Nothing That Is finds the tragic beast that is FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY gnashing its teeth at the world, dripping blood from being forced to bit its tongue in the face of, well, the nothing that is. The world is indeed a very ugly place, getting uglier by the day, and yet there are glimmers here and there that keep us going - like the choruses in both songs, which will burrow deep into your brain like a tapeworm. The very bloodstream is affected, and the riffs are a part of you, now. Oh, and Joe Bad is gonna sing you to sleep and be the voice of your nightmares - his performance here (and everyone else's) is quite peerless.

If "Savior Of None/Ashes Of All" wasn't written in the throes of a fever dream with Slaughter of the Soul playing on repeat, then there's clearly egg on my face. What a display of force, enveloping a uniquely soft center, everything molten, all the time. The title track has more crunch in the midsection than the newest special at Taco Bell (and doesn't make you question your entire life). "Lurch" showcases an impressively free flowing and jazz informed backbeat with a post-metal flair, lurching indeed to an inevitable conclusion. Arguably, the last songs on the album are the heaviest in terms of sheer tonal quality, with "Lower Purpose" being easily one of the meatiest morsels of the modern era of FFOA. It's just. So. Heavy. You're making the face.

Ending off with the powerful and complex closing track "The Silver Sun", FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY show, again, that they are the top dog in the deathcore heap, and then some. I wish the production were clearer, overall, but salute the entire effort as a whole. I mean, it's something. It is.

4.0 Out Of 5.0