Since the release of 2002's Fused Together In Revolving Doors, The Red Chord has slowly but surely become one of the most popular and respected bands throughout the hardcore/metal scene. Fusing together an amalgam of various styles of heavy music, the band's sound refuses to be typecast into any one specific genre. Drawing influences from hardcore, thrash metal, and grindcore (in a big way), Clients presents an all out assault on the senses, some highly impressive musical chops, and no shortage of intense, extremely moshable breakdowns.
From the opener "Fixation on Plastics," The Red Chord make it startlingly clear that they are not just another trendy, disposable scene-metal band. Blitzspeed blast beats, intricate guitar interplay, and positively inhuman vocals are abound on this impressive sophomore effort. Imagine what "Between the Overrated and Me" are shooting for, only way better and loads more ferocious. For one thing, instead of having that dude who sounds like a seven-year-old girl attempting the cookie monster growl on vocals, the Red Chord employs Guy Kozowyk, a man who actually sounds more like Satan's high priest than an angsty twenty-something. Unlike most grindcore, which essentially replaces axes with feedback, the guitars here are precise, technical, and most importantly very clear, due in part to the great production that doesn't sacrifice clarity for brutality or vice versa. They also show no direct influence from the Swedish melodeath or Gothenburg sound, which is pathetically becoming rarer and rarer amongst the modern day metal scene. The drums aren't quite in a league with Mastodon or The Dillinger Escape Plan, but Brad Frickeisen does make most other drummers look like piles of puke.
There are some bona fide soul-shattering moments on Clients. Check out the intro and first verse of "Fixation on Plastics" and the build-up and breakdown of "Upper Decker." Completely fucking awesome. The band even ends the record on an Isis/Neurosis-like note with the seven-minute instrumental, "He Was Dead When I Got There," a far-from-typical track for this type of band to attempt. It won't be long before the Red Chord is recognized as one of those bands who have moved beyond the stylistic restraints of grind/hardcore, such as Cephalic Carnage and Pig Destroyer.
Hands down, one of the best metal/hardcore albums of the year.
