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Blog Categories Review Sophist - Avenger… Liberator... - Reviewed By fullmetalmayhem!

Sophist - Avenger… Liberator... - Reviewed By fullmetalmayhem! Thursday April 27 2023, 2:30 PM

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Sophist - Avenger… Liberator... - Reviewed By fullmetalmayhem ! Check it out here at this link: https://fullmetalmayhem.wordpress.com/2023/04/26/sophist-mit-avenger-liberator/

Other band releases: This is their second EP, plus three singles and two albums.

How did I meet the band: Black Metal and Grindcore actually go together damn well when you think about it. Still, it feels like an odd mix and that's exactly what I thought when Metal Devastation Radio sent me these five songs. Then let's see how weird it gets:

What do I think of the record: They really managed to create something from these two genres that shows the influences, but is of one piece. In none of the tracks does either the black or the grind component predominate. If you like it soft and aesthetic, you should avoid this. Somehow they managed to make the music sound big and powerful as well as chaotic and cold as ice.

This is particularly evident in CLASS WARFARE, CONQUEST & POWER. The song rushes towards the listener, pissed off and unchecked. So the only choice left is to let yourself be rolled over or to get out of the way, i.e. to end the EP.

Conclusion: A strange EP, without a doubt, but I like it damn much. Two great genres that sound wonderful together. So if I've piqued your curiosity: fullmetalmayhem

Release Date:
March 24th (Bandcamp exclusive + Youtube full album stream)
April 28, 2023 (Official release for all streaming platforms)

FFO: Napalm Death, Anaal Nathrakh, Mayhem

Location: Edmonton, Canada

Sophistry – noun – the use of clever but false arguments, especially to deceive.
There is no deceiving with Edmonton, Canada’s Sophist, however, the trio of Michael K. Sparks (bass/guitar), Davis R. Hay (programming/vocals), Helge Lipphardt (guitar) are straightforward in their approach to grinding black and death metal.

Conjured in June of 2019 by Hay and Sparks, Sophist dove straight into recording their debut EP “Betrothal To The Stone: Conception of Mephisto”. Immediately after release, they started production on a follow-up record and recruited Lipphardt for additional guitars and writing input.

The trio keeps the writing process simple, with Hay defining the drums, synths, and song structure followed by Lipphardt and Sparks’ overlay of bass and guitar. Hay's pessimistic lyrics at first focussed on occult themes, alchemical allegory, and nihilism, but more recently on working-class politics. Sophist transmutes these elements into blisteringly fast & flavorful "black grind".

In November 2019 Sophist signed with Niflhel Records to release their first full-length album, “Dissolution”, which was released on February 7th, 2020 on CD, LP, and all digital platforms. A follow-up album, "Putrid Faction", was released on December 1st, 2020, which saw more death metal in the sound. A single called “Metabolic Chasm…” was released in 2021 with Tsunami Nagasaki (Beaver Fever) on bass and guitar as a guest and Hay on vocals and additional guitar.

Now Sophist is preparing to release a new EP, “Avenger… Liberator…” on April 28, 2023, with an early release exclusive to Bandcamp on March 24th. "Avenger... Liberator..." sees more death metal added to the sound and a greater emphasis on industrial/electronic elements, and even some aspects of thrash and speed metal.

Check out the videos!