It's no secret that the worldwide pandemic has affected all forms of art. From film, to music, to dance and language arts, every discipline has tried to interpret the feelings and impact since early 2020. What makes each perspective different is what message the artist hopes to share.
Enter Fit For An Autopsy and their upcoming release, Oh What the Future Holds. Still coming in hot from their critically acclaimed 2019 album, The Sea of Tragic Beasts, the New Jersey based sextet bring a somber but reflective look at what was and what could be. The result is an evolved version of the progressive textures fans have come to love since as far back as 2013's Hellbound.
Welcoming the world to the album with the title track, the breakdown literally sets the stage for the intensity to come, before running right into the fast paced riffs of "Pandora". Expect to see the crowd churn like an angry sea between both tracks.
Dialing back a bit, emphasis on 'a bit', "Far From Heaven" leads off with a mesmerizing guitar riff and ambient vocals courtesy of Joseph Badolato. The main hook of the song is a headbang worthy march beat that seems to fall somewhere between Fear Factory and Gojira territory. With little warning, the song come crashing down on itself in an immense breakdown, like a sinkhole forming below a mighty building: awe inspiring but devastating.
Venturing further into an experimental realm, "Two Towers" asks us to 'accept the things (we) cannot change' and delivers a breakdown that is worthy of actual dancing as opposed to the usual form of moshing. The different layers of guitar work provided between Patrick Sheridan, Timothy Howley, and Will Putney weave together to provide a spacey, almost prog-like, ending to the song.
Closing the album out is the nearly seven minute long "The Man That I Was Not", which showcases Badolato's stellar tenor voice, reminiscent of Opeth. Indeed, the rotation of cleaner sections soaked in reverb laden guitars and the roaring vocals over razor sharp instrumentals pay a nice homage to Mikael Åkerfeldt and company, even if it this version is much heavier at times.
The Metal Mayan Rating: 4.5/5
I had to go back and listen to "Two Towers" several times, I just couldn't get enough of the groove in the breakdown. I sincerely hope Fit For An Autopsy plays this song live, if not give it a music video to go with it. I can already see the mosh pit open wide for it.
The aforementioned hook in "Far From Heaven" is also something that I expect to see leave many necks sore after it's played at the upcoming tour. This was definitely a solid choice for a single as it is an excellent example of the album's most noteworthy elements.
Visit your local record store and pick up a copy of Oh What the Future Holds, coming out January 14, 2022 on Nuclear Blast. Catch Fit For An Autopsy on tour with Enterprise Earth (check out our review of their new album, The Chosen, here) and more in the U.S. from January through February!
Advance album copy courtesy of Atom Splitter PR and Nuclear Blast