Yawn Of Osiris
With a career clocking in at just over fifteen years now, Born Of Osiris have announced that this will be the first of two brand new releases in 2019 with an assumed (and as yet not revealed) link grafted between the two of them. This is the first record to include new bassist Nick Rossi who has immediately got stuck in with the writing process. A new member joining the Born Of Osiris ranks is not an uncommon occurrence – this is a band who became bogged down with several changes over their earlier years which arguably adversely affected their levels of consistency on record. With The Simulation, Born Of Osiris have introduced a LOT of layers and pushed for this 'futuristic' feel across the music as they've not shied away from the odd blast of synth and sound effects alongside their djent-style heaviness. With so much going on, and having this approach whereby the various different sounds are layered on top of each other rather than seamlessly weaved together triggers not much more than a genuine headache.
It's mashed together poorly to the point where if you feel inclined to go in for repeat listens there are sections where you will consistently just skip over. It's a shame because there are moments amongst the mess which absolutely slam - Disconnectome for example pelts you with these heavy Fear Factory-esque bursts of energy which genuinely make you feel like the record is about to turn a corner before something like Cycles Of Tragedy comes on and it feels like you're listening to stock entrance music for a WWE star who appears once or twice before disappearing in to the ether.
Overall, for the most part, a lot of this record just feels poorly executed.