Wednesday 18 September 2019

FAWN LIMBS

BandFAWN LIMBS
Genres: Dissonant Hardcore / Mathcore / Grindcore / Math-Grind / Death Metal / Death-Grind / Math-Metal
Related artists: Creinium, Infinite Nomad, Mireplaner, Lung Knots, PsyOpus, Commit Suicide, Allan, Overlord Exterminator, Alphanumeric, Artificial Brain, Luminous Vault, Gath Šmānê and Aeviterne.
CountryHelsinki, FINDLAND & Pennsylvania/New York U.S.A.
Years Active2018-present
Song: "Ore Lung"
Album: "Harm Remissions"
Year: 2019
For fans ofInto The MoatMeshuggah, Car Bomb, Ion Dissonance, Crowpath, Discordance Axis, See You Next Tuesday, The Red Chord, Ulcerate, Full of Hell, Pyrrhon, Vermin Womb, Nightmarer, Frontierer, Coma Cluster Void, Psyopus and Tony Danza Tap Dance Extravaganza.
Label(s): Self Released / Wolves And Vibrancy Records / Roman Numeral Records / Sludgelord Records / Dark Trail Records
This post's artist is from the August+September 2019 Mix. This is track #7.
You can download: the August+September 2019 Mix#8+9 right here or get the new October 2019 Mix#10 here

Review by: TARQUIN JONES

Fawn Limbs are a transatlantic math-grind project originally consisting of Eeli Helin (Infinite Nomad, Mireplaner) based in Finland handling all of the vocals and stringed duties and Lee Fisher (ex-PsyOpus) based in the States handling all of the percussion. My initial introduction to Eeli's musical pursuits was by previously featuring his chaotic post metal project Mireplaner on a multi-genre digital sampler for my old blog Reign of Low. I was absolutely blown away by what I heard on the debut EP from the band entitled, 'Diapiric'. With just two tracks and the band's fresh approach on the post metal genre, I was instantly hooked. I highly recommend checking them out and exploring their latest release as well.

After a short while Eeli mentioned to me that he had a new math metal / grindcore focused project in the works and that it would be coming a few months later. I was eagerly awaiting to hear it and knew it would deliver the goods. Enter the destructive sonic powerhouse, FAWN LIMBS.

Since the band's inception, they have kept themselves busy by releasing 3 well acclaimed EPs during the fall of 2018 and delivered a bold single to boot. Examining the band's impressive material, one will notice that FAWN LIMBS expertly showcases their honed songwriting prowess and tightly woven musicianship from their previous projects. They have also established themselves as absolute masters of incorporating calculated bursts of mathematical chaos, grinding savagery and unsettling walls of dissonance in a unique fashion. Over the course of each release, the band has also shown a progression of their sound. Some of the material focuses on highlighting the emphasis of intense technical ferocity and accompanying it with pulsating groove laden passages. On other tracks the band experiments with sonic aural textures and dense soundscapes to elevate the moody atmospherics. This juxtaposition of approaches creates a truly cathartic dynamic for the band's overall direction.

As of January 2019, Samuel Smith (Artificial Brain, Luminous Vault) was introduced into the fold. He is also based within the States and will tackle all of the required bass duties. This inclusion has further rounded the caliber of FAWN LIMBS capabilities in terms of songwriting and musicianship.

On August 2nd 2019, FAWN LIMBS delivered their highly anticipated debut album entitled, 'Harm Remissions'. This is also the first offering on which Samuel Smith features. The album features 13 destructive tracks, which from the very beginning moments hit the listener like a freight train. The production on the album offers a sense of primal rawness, whilst still maintaining an organic feel amidst the calculated attack of the band's musicianship. The album's mix also allows for each instrument to be heard distinctly and shine clearly. This further enhances the overall ferocity and barrage thrown at the listener when the play button is hit. The tones of the guitars on the album are disgustingly twisted and the bass has a pulverizing brooding boom. I'm especially drawn to the percussion section, as the drum sound packs one hell of a punch. I also really enjoy the jagged roughness that is captured within the vocals. They highlight Eeli's range and scathing lyrical delivery.

In terms of the album's instrumentation, 'Harm Remissions' features buzzing and squealing frenetic guitars. Eeli creates an absurdly jarring and cacophonous energy with his explosive guitar work. The wall of amplified sound bombards the listener with such a dizzying effect. It will surely leave your head spinning, trust me. Offsetting all these wildly charged moments are the clever usage of crushing breakdowns to pummel the unsuspecting listener into further oblivion. There are also some very brief moments of melodics in which the listener will try to cling to and find their bearings, only to have it swerve into another direction completely. Fawn Limbs guitar and thick sounding bass are all locked down by the furious percussive work of Lee Fisher. He has a masterful stroke of combining technical patterns with immense groove and feel. Eeli's thunderous roars compliment the volatile mayhem of all the instruments. I am often at times reminded of the best parts of vocalists like Michael Dafferner, Ethan McCarthy, Chris Fox or Guy Kozowyk.

The album also features some killer guest appearances, which adds some more variety to all the calamity on offer here. Each guest vocalist contributed their own lyrics for their respective track features as well. These guests include Andrew Hawkins (Baring Teeth) on track 13, Champ Morgan (BLK OPS, Derelict Satellite, Kill the Client) on track 7 and Mitchell Luna (Maruta, Noisear) on track 9.

Although the album clocks in at just under 30 minutes in length, the selection and placement of each song on 'Harm Remissions' blends into the next with a seamless fashion. This helps to create an easier and comfortable listening experience amidst all the mind battering savagery. I'm sure this will be have listeners hitting the replay button again and again, as I did after the first run through.

My choice cuts from the album are, "Odium Pitch", "Ore Lung", "Wisdom Teething" and "Threats Entrench and Renew". I feel these best illustrate the intention FAWN LIMBS set out to convey with this outing. It's an utterly hellish ride from start to finish. One can only hope to make it out in one piece.

A cassette album release is out now via Sludgelord Records. Dark Trail Records also announced a run of CDs to begin shipping towards the end of August. A 12" vinyl LP is set to be released sometime in 2020 on Roman Numeral Records for the US and Wolves And Vibrancy Records for EU based distribution.

For all the listeners who enjoy music that truly pushes the extremes, I highly urge you to check this out and pick up a psychical copy. Don't sleep on this and miss out. The beast that is FAWN LIMBS are only just getting started... I can't wait for more.

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DISCOGRAPHY

2018 - Towing Heads 7"EP (stream/donate/download here)
2018 - Languor digitalEP (stream/donate/download here)
2018 - Thrum digitalEP (stream/donate/download here)

2019 - Love Will Strangle You Forever digital single (stream/donate/download here)
2019 - Hofa Cifra cdLP discography collection (stream/donate/download here)
2019 - Harm Remissions cassette/cdLP (stream/donate/download here)

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(2019) FAWN LIMBS - "Gravitated" (from 'Harm Remissions')

(2019) FAWN LIMBS - "Ore Lung" (from 'Harm Remissions')

(2019) FAWN LIMBS - "Hubris Terrain Expansion" (from 'Harm Remissions')

(2019) FAWN LIMBS - "Love Will Strangle You Forever" (from 'Love Will Strangle You Forever')

(2018) FAWN LIMBS - "Headless Bovine In The Frontier" (from 'Thrum')

(2018) FAWN LIMBS - "Languor" (from 'Languor')

(2018) FAWN LIMBS - "Mouthless" (from 'Towing Heads')

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FAWN LIMBS additional links
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