Headless Kross - Projections II (2019)
Following up on the 2016 release of
Projections I, with a live
album sandwiched between, Headless Kross have popped back up to
deliver the second installment. As with the first one, they bring
four tracks to bear, each of them hovering around the ten-minute
mark, and their fusion of heaviness and melodic emphasis (as we
encountered on their Volumes album, back in 2015) is still solid as hell.
“Signed
in Blood” is the first of the tracks, and it bursts into action
with harsh yells and a riff that feels like it's looking for a fight.
The drums lean into that vibe, punctuating measure round-outs with
battering beats, and once the initial volley of aggression has been
launched, the song settles into a slower groove while holding onto
that opening roughness. The tone and fuzz are quite tasty, with the
bass' reverb looming out over the higher-register components, and the
almost scratchy timbre of the guitar gives its spidery chords a bit
of spine-tingling eeriness.
“One
Hundred and Forty Four Mirrors” shakes up the flavor with some
warbling flange on the bass, a shifty, near-jittery rhythm from the
drums, and some striking soloing from the guitar. The vocals still
feel like they're being punched out of the singer, but they make it
work with the overall oppressive atmosphere, and once they settle
into the main groove, they ride it hard to the finish. “Falls the
Shadow” leads into the B-side, spotlighting some cool rhythm
alternation between guitar and drums before shifting into more of a
heavy grind mode. There's some enjoyable progressions, especially in
their outro change-ups, and they give off the impression of this
being one that can really lead to some fun experimentation in live
sets.
Lastly,
“The Obstacles Becomes the Path” takes listeners on an
exploratory groove dive, feeling something like a structured jam
session for much of its run. About halfway through, though, they
tighten it up for a ramping up of tempo and intensity, pushing the
central riff on until hitting the finishing disintegration. There's
plenty of heaviness to let wash over you on this album, and once the
riffs get planted in your head, it's a serious challenge to uproot
them. So if you've been looking for some anger-soaked doom to round
out your year, Headless Kross have got you covered.
~
Gabriel
For
Fans Of; Heavydeath, HellLight, Humbaba, Salem's Pot, Wounded Giant
~
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