One of Italy's newest Djent/Deathcore exports ON SCALAR WAVES are making, well, waves with their innovative take on the sub-genre. Their latest album "Sequence" contains a wild assortment of special digital effects and breakdowns of all tempos and technical levels. These guys have a very modern sound and use all manners of catchy hooks in the music, and for that much, it definitely works to make the album fun to listen. When I first saw that there were only five tracks to choose from, I rolled my eyes a little and thought to myself that they might be pretty long to get the total listening time close to at least thirty minutes. My disappointment was furthered by the realization that with the longest song being just over three minutes, this was an album that would be done in less than the time it takes for me to drive to the store. Regardless, it made for a pretty interesting few minutes.

Some of the digital effects ON SCALAR WAVES use in their music is well-­placed. The rapid break beat, the octave jumps, and the open­-chord string bends keep the guitar progressions fresh. Realistically, I can't see how these effects are usable in live music, so that may be something the band has figured out. Overall, the music has a somewhat uplifting sound common in the Metalcore sub-genre. The heavy, driving breakdown riffs (similar to the bands LEGEND, ROSE FUNERAL, and WHITECHAPEL) are not groundbreaking but could still get a crowd on their feet and jumping. The opening to "Echoes To Perfection" is a hefty dose of blast beat, perfectly placed before the tempo "slows" back down.

The lyrics are another story. I am aware and understanding that the band's lyricist most likely did not learn English as a first language, and the content suffers a little as a result. The lyrics are not necessarily original or meaningful, and at times the words are misplaced and it became necessary to use "pausing" so that a particular word matched up with the music. Add some crusty-­sounding vocals and I found myself wishing for the instrumental versions of the songs. Not to worry though, this is a great start for a band whose intentions are to write music in a fairly convoluted sub-genre like Deathcore or Metalcore. They may need to refine some of their musical components, but I see these guys becoming a hot commodity in Italy's Metal scene and we will see what the future has in store for them!