Mancunian Music of the Spheres
Following on from their 2008 debut full-length album "No Guts, No Glory" is the ambitious release of "Equilibrium", with the band hurtling forwards at full pelt thanks to the addition of guitarist Audie Harrison to the line-up. There is no doubt that Manchester-based metal quartet Allerjen have guts. The question is; can they find the glory?
Opening with the immense track 'Destroyer of Worlds', the album pounds with force, frontman John Dower's grisly vocals erupting in waves of wrath. 'Treachery' follows on effortlessly, with guitar duo Harrison and Paul Wilkinson driving the song onwards with its sturdy riffage. Allerjen would no doubt relish being placed in the company of names like Lamb of God and Machine Head, and based on the promise of this album's introduction, one begins to think that it is not an impossibility for the Mancunian ensemble to rise to such towering heights.
The moments of melodiousness that come piercing through the ferociousness of Allerjen's sound is somewhat underused and could prove to become a valuable weapon in their arsenal, as they handle its use so very well. 'The Process of Being' and 'Beyond The Promised Land' both employ heavenly guitar melodies (beautifully harmonised in the latter, too) that glimmer with beauty before being consumed by the hellish cloak of deathcore-infused metal. Tracks like 'Achieving the Equilibrium' are inexhaustibly powered by sticksman Paul Tarbuck, the rhythm master providing a cement-like foundation for the metallers to build upon.
Unfortunately the penultimate song 'Humanoid' is a dragging disappointment, with the core 3 minutes and 30 seconds of the track lacking the structural imagination that had been exhibited so well previously. The harmony explored in the synthesised orchestral latter half begins to venture into intriguing territory, but is ultimately ruined by the cringe-worthy MIDI piano sound. With so much effort poured into the respectable studio production, one can only wonder why Allerjen chose to jeopardise the overall impression by using such a dry and amateurish synthesised instrument.
'Embrace The Divine' is a colossal closer; a thunderous climax that is ruthlessly breathtaking. Although the placement of the cowbell's use is superb, the percussion instrument lacks the depth that could have made this track utterly monstrous. The tinny tone, although soaked with reverb, lacks the earth-shattering boom that would have branded each striking downfall a catastrophic event, with the potential to bear frequencies so close to the brown note that they would leave you crying for your mother. "Needs more cowbell?" Allerjen don't.
If the brutality of Sylosis normally dominates your playlists, then Allerjen may well not only catch your attention, but dig its talons in and hold on indefinitely. "Equilibrium" is an album with clusters of fury, yet manages to tease with rare instances of divine melody. Certain elements of this ten-track-stormer may not quite have hit the mark, but it undoubtedly suggests that the Mancunian quartet is an exciting prospect for British underground metal.