:: Intronaut - Void

Intronaut

With a line up consisting of former/current members of Anubis Rising, Exhumed, Uphill Battle, and a completely unknown bassist who holds a bachelor’s degree in music, you could well expect the unexpected. True to the eclectic mix of musician’s on offer, that’s exactly what Intronaut offer on their debut full length release ‘Void’, (which is the follow up to their debut EP ‘Null’ early in 2006). Under the loose genre tag of progressive metal, the Los Angeles quartet fuse together equal parts of Mastodon, Isis, Losa, Kellhaul and Voivod, yet remarkably enough, stand alone clear of the above mentioned acts to stand alone in sound a sound of their own making. The opening track ‘A Monolithic Vulgarity’ initially delves in huge atmospheric breakdowns before slowly building up to a full on assault, which inevitably makes way for a huge riff filled groove that allows all the said musicians to embellish upon the basic structure to create a monumental wave of sound that all the while retains a structure and melody that resembles something of a song. 'Teledildonics’ is well and truly the highlight of the album with it’s jagged metallic time changes and heavy riffing (not to mention the Meshuggah like thrash moment around the three quarter mark), while ‘Iceblocks’ leans more towards Tool territory (at least for about the first minute and a half), before allowing all hell to break loose towards a final conclusion. Intronaut’s ‘Void’ isn’t something that’s easily describes, much like it’s not an easy listen. But like I said, if you could image an uneasy mix of Mastodon, Isis, Losa, Kellhaul and Voivod, you’ll know what you’re in for.