Artist: Turian
Album: No Longer Human
Label: Wise Blood Records
Release Date: 05/08/2022
Location: Seattle, Washington, United States
I’ve been on a strange kick these past few months where weird genre fusion bands that features a chaotic blend of metal, hardcore and noise rock have really been scratching my musical itch. Joining more established acts such as Show Me the Body, Soul Glo and Chat Pile on my repeat listen list are the Washington based force of nature known as Turian and their brand-new album No Longer Human. What makes it even better is that their album is available through our good friends over at Wise Blood Records who have been on a real hardcore kick themselves in 2022.
I have to admit that I was never a hardcore fan until about a few years ago when I discovered ultra-aggressive metallic hardcore acts such as Ringworm and All Out War. What I have I really started to appreciate the genre as a whole over the past 6 months or so is a real openness to cross some of the more rigid genre boundaries that many metal bands choose to operate within. I’ve seen plenty of bands seamlessly incorporate hip hop, electronic or noise rock influences into their music and Turian are very much the latter.
The band’s style melds sound and influences primarily from hardcore, noise rock, sludge and grindcore, but there’s some screamo and death metal elements thrown into the mix throughout the album too. The result of this wide pool of inspiration is an album that has constantly shifting and changing melodies and rhythms. I can safely guarantee you that at no point on this album will you ever feel bored or find it to be repetitive.
As far as concepts go the album covers a wide variety of topics, but it’s worth noting that there is a consistent focus on sci-fi horror throughout. There are constant mentions of Black Mirroresque horrifying future technology and the suffering that it brings. Turian basically confirm this with their self-ascribed label of “NEW FUTURE NOISE METAL”. The band’s name has me curious though, I’m left wondering if it happens to be a Mass Effect reference or if it has a completely different meaning. The band’s sci-fi themes have me thinking that there is a serious chance though.
Vocally I’m somewhat reminded of Arch Enemy’s Angela Gossow on her last few albums with the band but with a rawer, more emotional tone to it and somewhat of a hardcore/screamo tinge. These vocals are one of my favourite elements on the album and really hammer home the aggressive aspect of the release. The rapid-fire delivery style during the more aggressive segments really hammers the listener, so that when those tense atmospheric lulls appear they’re left wondering how much respite they will be granted before the onslaught begins all over again.
Instrumentally the band do a fantastic job of balancing highly tense atmospheric segments with pure outright aggression. It’s this balancing act that makes the album so captivating. Aside from that it’s the instrumental proficiency and complex song writing ability of the band that really makes this a unique listening experience. The ability of the band to weave blatantly noise rock-based riffs in between segments of grindcore and sludge only to explode out into a hardcore inspired segment really is an auditory experience all its own. The guitar work and the drums are tied on this album for who is in the driver seat, as both bounce off each other continuously, edging each other on to be faster and louder and yet both knowing exactly when to tone things down.
Overall, this is a fascinating album from a band that I am extremely grateful to have discovered. I would have been sorely disappointed if this one had slipped under my radar, which it very nearly did. If you enjoy complex, ultra-aggressive yet highly groove laden extreme music then this is the album for you. DO NOT SLEEP ON IT!
Listen to and order the album:
