Reviewed by Ian Phillips.
Dyssidia, Independent, 2020.
Dyssidia is an Adelaide progressive metal band and one of the most mind-boggling outfits I’ve listened to this year.
I’m sure the metal heads amongst us will be very familiar with them but for the rest of us who know little about the genre, or are totally unacquainted, then the best description I can think of is their music is epic in scope and almost classical in construction.
Their vocals swing from melodic, almost sweet, through to a bone-shaking death growl.
I was amazed to discover that lead singer Mitch Brachman does both extremes and swings effortlessly between them in the same song.
Their music is remarkably intricate.
Heavy riffs give way to tightly performed arpeggio interludes, even branching into progressive cross-over rock/jazz on occasions.
It’s this broad dynamic range that stands them apart from most other bands exploring similar territory.
Not only are they pushing musical boundaries but they have the musical acumen to pull it off.
It’s not everyone’s cup of tea but every musician that listens to this album will appreciate the incredible musicianship. These blokes really are good.
Their music can take the listener from a dreamy and barren landscape to the edge of hell and back again, and they do it in nearly every song.
They can lull you to sleep with tinkling ivories and then crash your dreams with skull crushing distorted guitar riffs.
As previously mentioned, their scope is large, HUGE is probably a better descriptor and they could run the risk of being seen as pretentious. It would be unjust and, anyway, I give them credit for daring to think big.
Apparently Dyssidia’s stage show is impressive and the band has already supported some of the biggest names in the heavy music genre, both local and international, on Australian tours.
In keeping with the band’s vision, Costly Signals is a long album.
Most tracks are more than five minutes in length, four are over six and one comes in at 10 plus.
Obviously if your vision is big it can take some time to get it all out.
