COGNIZANT hailing from Dallas, Texas were formed in 2016. They play Gindcore with Technical Death Metal elements. Their self-named debut full-length album was originally released in 2016 as digital release and as 12´´ vinyl. Since then, COGNIZANT released one single and two splits, the latest one together with BLURRING in 2020. Polish label Selfmadegod Records rereleased "Cognizant" on CD in November 2020. Selfmadegod Records is specialized in Grindcore, Hardocore, and Metal. "Cognizant" has a length of almost 17 minutes. There is no video release from the album yet.

"Cognizant" is a clever mix between old school Grindcore and modern technical Death Metal. It is right on the point, it is straight into the face, and it is brutal. The nine songs are short, aggressive, and fast. They only differ at their level of technicality. It all starts with "Hyper-dimensional Inflation" and "Solipsism", two short festivals of blast-beats and deafening screams and growls. The guitar riffs are comparably simple. While the opening song is fast throughout, "Solipsism" ends with a short mid-tempo part.

"Oppression", "Ennui" and "Myopic" are among the songs with an enhanced level of technicality. The song structures are more complex and distorted than the opening songs and the lead guitar sequences as well as bass and drums of high technical quality. All songs keep the brutality by including short bursts of high speed blast-beat attacks. "Ennui" has a few mid-tempo breaks with darker and atmospheric lead guitar sequences. "Myopic" continues where "Ennui" has left and also includes short atmospheric breaks.

"Adrift" and "Penumbra" are somewhere in between the "kick-in-your-face" and the more technical approach. The songs are played at breakneck speed with bludgeoning drums, aggressive and powerful guitar riffs as well as with lead guitar sequences that maintain a high level of technicality. "Penumbra" includes a few mid-tempo breaks during the middle part of the song. With the final song "Dichotomy" COGNIZANT concludes the record by going back to the more simple approach similar to that of the first few songs.

"Cognizant" is a mixture of distorted song structures, dissonant guitar riffs, highly technical lead guitars, bass, and drums on one hand, and the brutality of the growls and the hammering blast-beat bursts on the other hand. COGNIZANT managed that mix very well. They have a unique style and their sound represents their own identity. The record is well produced. "Cognizant" is a rerelease and the record is now available on CD. Fans who like a good mix between the simplicity of Grindcore and the demanding technical Death Metal will like the record. It will be interesting to see how COGNIZANT approach their future releases.