Monachopsis can only describe themselves as "A techdeathmess from the midlands." Hailing from England, Monachopsis has been independently releasing EPs and singles since 2018, all crammed with their melodic-yet-technical sound. "The Carcass Choir" marks their latest release in three years, so something's definitely been brewing in the group since 2023. Their brewing has finally bubbled over their death metal cauldron, and now it's time for Monachopsis to take full control of my ears for the next twenty-five minutes. Let the carcass choir sing!

The EP unsurprisingly opens with the title track; "The Carcass Choir." Trance-y solos supplemented the chuggy riffs, and the pummeling drums are overtaken by some pretty black metal-sounding vocals for a death metal album. The vocals are more of the screeched/high pitched caliber, which sounds way too overdone production-wise. The track progresses in dissonance, as instruments blend in and out. The solos are practically never ending, which isn't always a bad thing, but masturbatory playing is a turn off for some listeners. The song overall plays very fast, but progresses pretty slow. "Letters From the Doomsday Cult" is up next, and the ghastly vocals continue. Not sure how to categorize them, but I really don't get a death metal feel from them. The ivories, tickled by Richard Allsopp, make a nice debut in the first half of the song, and they add some great (and needed) atmosphere. After four more minutes of hearing the drum programming work overtime to combat the complicated guitars, I'm still not fully sold. "Love as a Weapon" is the third track, and takes advantage of the melodic side of Monachopsis. The opening, if extended, could make a banger AOR song, but alas, the raspy vocals return. It's a metal ballad, but it's absolutely not. The quick introduction of weak clean vocals tries to push it into that territory, but I'm having some pretty  conflicting feelings about the first chunk of the project at this point.

The second-to-last song, "Scathed by Branches of Malice," is where things get better for me. The brutal opening put me in a good mood for the track, to the extent where I don't think the vocals are THAT bad on this piece. The song feels tighter, and there's way more going on. For a technical death metal lover, that's a good thing. The last song is a monolith compared to it's predecessors, clocking in at just over eight minutes. "The God Project" experiments more, too. More blast beats, more atmosphere, more everything, yet still feels empty for some reason. All songs on "The Carcass Choir" sound like something crucial is missing, and it's a feeling I couldn't shake throughout the duration of the EP.

It's confusing that I can't directly pinpoint one thing wrong with the EP, per say. The elements build upon each other. The drums, an integral part of technical and metal as a whole, are programmed, so it sounds a bit stale in the big picture. If only someone was really pounding away during the long stretches of technicality. I was also constantly having issues with the vocals, as they sometimes sound like they'd fit into a black metal demo, and at other times a homemade attempt at deathcore. Practically everything's there, but some key carcasses are missing from the choir, for sure.