In hindsight, they might want to change their name to ECLECTIC. Just a thought. And I'm not sure what to think of the goat in the suit giving me the finger on the cover. Maybe their next release can be a mallard duck throwing up a few gang signs.

I make the statement regarding EXTREMA's name because it sounds like I hear several differing and often conflicting styles of metal here, and I don't know if it always works. It's like some strange man with one lazy eye and a cackling laugh handing you a pecan pie hot-glued to a cat. Individually, those are both nice things, but I'm not at all sure what I'm supposed to do with this thing I've been given. And the guy walks away into the setting sun in a very mysterious and vague fashion.

There are sounds of Thrash, Groove Metal, Metalcore, some Power Metal type shit and weird dissonant melodies all thrown together as if collected spontaneously and thrown into the mixing bowl to see what would turn out. At times I was lost as to what I was supposed to take away from it. It's like a dead serious politician delivering a very powerful speech on the necessity of procuring a future for our children while he is also jamming his dick into the mouth of Kermit The Frog. I agree with what he is saying, but I feel like his body language is offering a conflicting message.

But, it's not entirely garbage. No, it actually does have some very decent writing and structure. At times, it does build and release tension quite nicely - even if it seems to have some pieces that feel like a random thing thrown into the pile because fuck it why not? Let's not forget that sometimes the conventions of whatever genre are there for a reason, and sometimes different elements don't combine well. Ice cream is a great dessert. Condoms are great for not having kids. Yet no one wants an ice cream condom. It's too cold and makes a bigger mess than you intended. And no one manufactures the hamburger umbrella or pickled shoes.

I feel like there is a lack of any real over-arching thesis here. One minute we are shouting about how much society sucks in a very minor key song, than the very next track plays like a happy tune for any typical romantic "comedy" ever released. I'm not an expert on the composition of music, but I feel like this is not how to do it.

So I'm not really sure what to think about this. It's so all over the place in its tone and structure I'm not even sure what I think. It's like when a foreigner says something to you in their native language that you don't speak, so you just smile and nod your head and assume it was probably an insult anyway. I guess I liked it, but I'm not really sure if that's because it was legitimately good or because it had almost every possible style under the sun, so something was bound to strike my fancy. I'll go with a 6 and wait for their fans to tell me to fuck off and die.

One thing I've learned reviewing Metal music is that every fan always feels like their band is "the best ever released you fucking asshole you don't know shit about Metal fuck you and go fuck yourself dumb American". I wish I was kidding.

Oh, and as a last note, the track titled "Pyre of Fire" is somewhat redundant. A pyre is a combustible pile of material used to perform a rudimentary cremation for burial. It's not completely redundant, but it would be similar to titling a song "Bathtub of Water".

Is there something else you normally fill it with?

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