Hailing from Atlanta, Georgia, TETRARCH is a nu-metal inspired metalcore band that formed in 2007. Having only released EP's and performing tours until now, TETRARCH has independently unleashed their debut full length album "Freak." The premiere track happens to be the self-titled track "Freak." Immediately you can hear the nu-metal influence from the likes of ROB ZOMBIE or LINKIN PARK mingling with the down-tuned tones of more metalcore styled guitar riffs. Keeping this in mind, the guitars tend to lean a little towards thrash with a bit more groove than we're used to with most metalcore bands. This however is not always the case with songs such as the next track "Spit", which features a more traditional metalcore style of playing. Guitars ring out palmed open notes in between heavy drum fills while Fore switches between his clean and aggressive vocals. About a minute in however, we get a bass drop that triggers some ambient noises that seem to be very KORN inspired.

Fore gets to show off his vocal abilities on the next song with the impressively heavy track "Pull the Trigger." This song almost seems like a DEVIL DRIVER track at times with an incredibly heavy flow topped by some aggressively fast vocals that could almost be considered rapping. "Mary" is considerably different with more chords and less open notes which allows Lerner to have a much more noticeable presence on the bass. This is especially prominent during the rested moments where they feature their more nu-metal elements. Almost completely void of nu-metal though, "Oddity" comes next which is almost strictly a thrash song. Limas excels here switching the beat up after almost every bar and injecting fills whenever possible. This can't be said about his drumming on "Breaking the Trend" though. Only a few different beats are used throughout this song that almost feel like they should be exclusive to breakdowns. This is also very disheartening when the actual breakdown arrives and the beat must become even more simplistic as a result. Even the melodic harmonies of the guitars can't save this song from repetition.

With the end of the album near, one thing is made apparent in the next song "Please let me be." It seems that Fore is much better at singing when going with a more baritone approach as his clean vocals always sounded a little thin to me on previous tracks. This approach sees continued use on the final track "Torn Apart" which is vastly different from its predecessors. Slowing down the tempo immensely, soft verses switch between a heavy melodic chorus that both make this song an appropriate way to end the album, yet also feel a little anti-climactic. The Production for all of this is surprisingly well done, given the fact that "Freak" was released independently without any label. Even for a debut album the quality is quite impressive with no instrument ever feeling over powered. At the end of the day, "Freak" is well rounded, heavy as hell and has great flow, with the added ability to induce some early 2000's nostalgia. Some songs may tend to lean too much towards your generic metalcore band, but what TETRARCH is able to do with the nu-metal inspired songs is genuinely pleasing.