You have to hand it to Minsk mathcore peddlers THE HYSTERIA for ramming their debut record full of samples, blast beats, jazz time-signature changes and at least three different types of screaming. Comparisons to Count Your Blessings-era BRING ME THE HORIZON and DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN are plentiful and their jazz-core wig-outs often delight and confound.
But throwing a shit-ton of sonic features in with the kitchen sink unfortunately makes this record feel haphazard. The guitarists are virtuoso, the bass enigmatic and the screaming lives up the band’s name, but lack of an overarching vision means that what begins as a record full of surprise and promise ends up feeling structureless and incoherent.
THE HYSTERIA sound best when their riffs are grinding and belligerent (towards the end of opener ‘The Messenger’) or when they chime and clash in clean (see the excellent ‘The End Of The Road to Golgotha Pt.II’). Standout track ‘Aurora’s Missiles’ marries the band’s jazz potential to hysterical brutality. Changes between sections feel like organic pseudo-orchestral movements and the schizophrenic vocals conjure Glassjaw-esque levels of intensity.
But, the band often suffer from Jazz Fails, most disappointingly at the ends of the last two tracks where attempts at freeform playing ala ROLO TOMASSI end up sounding like the entertainment on a cruise ship.
With more songwriting maturity, THE HYSTERIA could make many mathcore fans sit up and listen. In spite of the record’s title, the band aren’t yet a paradigm of the faith.
SAM FALLE