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Dynahead: Antigen
Dynahead Antigen new music review

Dynahead: Antigen

Modern Progressive Metal/Metalcore
Rating: 3.5/5.0

Independent/Self-promotion
www.dynahead.com.br
www.myspace.com/dynahead
Review: Craig Hartranft,  12.07.2009

To be honest, I found Dynahead's first full-length release Antigen more than a little perplexing, and difficult to wrap my ears around. Released in 2008 to rather generous praise, I was expecting something nothing less than dazzling. Possibly my conundrum revolves around Antigen's eclectic musical landscape. To start, this work falls under the category of modern metal with a progressive twist.

To the former, the representative harsh vocals are present with hardcore swimming with sharks of melodic death growls. I want to say that they're will placed, but they're more annoying than anything else. Additionally, there's plenty of solid riffing, another modern metal prerequisite, and many nods to thrashing about. In other words, there's a solid bit of traditional metalcore erupting from this disc. Ho-hum! That's hardly new, and also becomes annoyingly derivative. Actually, thanks to the mundane modern metal elements, I nearly did not make through the first three songs. But the tide turns, in my opinion, about the fourth song Tactile Haven as Dynahead's progressive side evolves.

When Dynahead invokes their progressive nature, things become interesting on Antigen. There's still plenty of modern elements from Tactile Haven to the end, but the songs don't pivot upon them. Dynahead becomes more technical without becoming weird like a Meshuggah as they bend and twist their compositions through melodic heavy metal, thrash, hardcore, and sincere inventive prog metal. Songs like Tactile Haven, Join and Surrender, the surprising Depart Now and the later, hugely pleasing, Do You Feel Cleansed border on near genius. As much as I oft despise the harsh and hardcore nature of much modern metal, Dynahead successfully navigates this terrain when they envelope the modern within their core progressive beliefs. It may take, and possibly require, significant spins to understand Dynahead's Antigen, but it is more than worth the experience. Dynahead could be the future of intelligent modern heavy and progressive metal.

In Short

It may take, and possibly require, significant spins to understand Dynahead's Antigen, but it is more than worth the experience. Dynahead could be the future of intelligent modern heavy and progressive metal.

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