NECKBREAKKER – Within The Viscera

vote
6.5

• Bands:
  NECKBREAKKER
• Duration: 00:40:00
• Available from: 06/12/2024
• Label:

• Nuclear Blast

Streaming not yet available

The debut of the Danish Neckbreakker, “Within the Viscera”, represents a quite interesting calling card for this very young band, which landed directly on a leading label like Nuclear Blast Records. The release of the album also takes place at a particular moment for the local scene, with veterans such as Konkhra and Panzerchrist also protagonists of new works in recent weeks, almost symbolizing a generational shift within the death-thrash genre made in Denmark.
Neckbreakker's sound actually seems to draw with a certain insistence from local tradition, while remaining updated to modern times. The quintet inherits the characteristic groove of bands such as the aforementioned Konkhra and Panzerchrist – without of course forgetting Illdisposed, Hatesphere, Dominus and Baest – thus referring to a key element of the Danish school, combining however this trend with a contemporary production and a more complex compositional approach , within which there is no shortage of tight plots and more technical incursions that recall a bit of healthy old American death metal. The result is therefore an album with medium-structured songs, rich in tempo changes and details, even in a melodic key, which denote a discreet ambition and a certain technical mastery.
Precisely starting from these assumptions, we can see in “Within the Viscera” a record that sometimes suffers from some naivety typical of younger bands making their debut. The compositions, however powerful, sometimes tend to be excessively elaborate and dispersive, almost as if they wanted to condense every single musical influence of the band members. This translates into pieces that sometimes get a little lost along the way, lacking the immediacy that could make the aforementioned groove more focused and incisive. It is no coincidence that a song like “Silo”, with its more thrashing and direct cut, quickly manages to stand out precisely because it offers a more compact and memorable aggression, suggesting a potentially winning direction for the future.
That said, the album is not without its inspired moments: some passages in extremely long tracks like “Unholy Inquisition” or “Face-Splitting Madness” highlight promising songwriting and a shot that, if well directed, could turn into a trademark. However, it is clear that Neckbreakers still have room for growth, especially in the ability to streamline their ideas and make them more usable in an area where impact seems to be the ultimate goal. Sometimes there are too many irons in the fire, too many twists and turns, and this lack of clarity in reaching the objective ends up being naive, despite the fact that this is a concept that the kids could arrive at with greater clarity once they have completed the tasks. first tours in support of the album.
For the moment, even more so when compared with Konkhra's modest recording comeback, the boys' debut is still lively, demonstrating that the Danish scene still has something to offer, also and above all thanks to the energy of the new generation. Despite having to work on a more defined and focused musical identity, with “Within the Viscera” Neckbreakker lay the foundations for a rather promising future.