ESCUELA GRIND hailing from Pittsfield, Massachusetts were formed in 2016. They play a mixture of several genres like Grindcore, Death Metal, and what is called Power Violence, and they released a series of 3 EPs and now their third full-length album. “Dreams On Algorithms” was produced by Jesus Fuentes, recorded by Kurt Ballou (GATECREEPER; IRON REAGAN; NAILS) at God City Studios, and mixed by Nick Townsend (ALICE IN CHAINS; NAILS) at Intrasonic Sound. It has a length of about 29 minutes. The album was released by US Deathcore and Grindcore specialists MNRK Heavy. The first album track is called “DOA”, and with the first note of the track starts a merciless pummeling with punishing guitar riffing, crunching basslines, relentless blast-beat attacks, and screams and growls coming straight out of the abyss. The guitar riffing is simple, direct, and very aggressive, and so are the vocals, which are growls between the deep and medium end of the guttural range. Tyically, ESCUELA GRIND tracks rarely exceed the three minutes mark, and “Always Watching You” fits the bill. A signature of the band’s sound are the Power Violence inspirations, meaning the continuously changing tempi and rhythms during the tracks.

“Always Watching You” probably fills the whole range of mid-tempo variants, with the riffing leading the direction. It is not as hammering as “DOA”, however, the track is still crushing skulls. “Constant Passenger” starts with a bit of a sluggish rhythm, which becomes faster soon. There are fast blast-beat attacks added as well down-tempo parts in alternating sequences. Finally, the track ends as it started. Vincent Bennett (THE ACACIA STRAIN) provides the vocals during the middle part of the track. “Moral Injury” starts again with sluggish rhythm and punishing riffs. There is a constant switch between down-tempo and mid-tempo during the track and the vocals keep that mayhem all well together. Both “Constant Passenger” and “Moral Injury” have a few Deathcore vibes. “Concept Of God” is more on the hammering side of things, it has a fast start with aggressive riffs, transitioning into a down-tempo part. The middle part is a bit chaotic with a few blast-beats. “Concept Of God” is a good example of the distorted song structures the band uses for their songs. “Animus Multiform” starts as a mid-tempo headbanger, interrupted by short blast-beat attacks. The riffing is direct and simple, while the drumming determines the tempo switches during the track. “Animus Multiform” is one of the rare songs with a lead guitar solo, and it just exceeds the three minutes mark, meaning it is one of the longest album tracks. “Scorpion” is a mid-tempo track interrupted by fast and pummeling “chorus” parts. The riffing is again devastating, the drumming is insane, and the vocal screams are out of this world. Tempo and rhythm breaks are kept to a minimum, at least the listener is not confronted with a multitude of twists and turns.

The onslaught continues with “Planned Obsolescence” and this is another hammering in the best ESCUELA GRIND manner. Tempo breaks, short blast-beat attacks, punishing riffs, crushing basslines, and on top of all that are the growls of Katerina Economou. “Toothless” is a headbanger at a sluggish rhythm and a few Grooves to begin with. It does not take long to increase the tempo, and the middle part is blisteringly fast and chaotic. The final part of the track is played at mid-tempo with tight riffing. “Toothless” is a banger and the track has been released as video with the YouTube link provided below. The album finishes with “Turbulence” and this one is a bit unusual as the vocals switch from growls to clean vocals. The clean vocal parts add a different layer to the track, although it is still the usual hammering with blast-beat thunderstorms, crunching bassline, and switching rhythms. The growls are a bit more versatile by adding a few higher pitched growls. “Turbulence” is slightly different than most album tracks, but it is a good way to end the album.

ESCUELA GRIND deliver excellence with a combination of Grindcore, Power Violence, Death Metal, and Deathcore. “Dreams On Algorithms” is more than a relentless pummeling, it is an experimental mixture of various Metal and Core elements, fusing together into a unique sonic experience. The album’s sound is very well kept together by an excellent vocalist. The album is well produced. “Dreams On Algorithms” is the best ESCUELA GRIND album so far and they prove that they are ready to become a serious force in Grindcore and beyond. The sky is the limit!