Invocation of Nehek
Self Titled
7.1
I always feel bad when I google a band and find out the origin of their name. Invocation of Nehek, a five-piece Connecticut metalcore outfit, apparently derived their name from a fearsome spell found in the RPG Warhammer. I feel like I should deduct a few points based on principle, but seeing as how Bolt Thrower was even tied to that game, perhaps I'll add a few. Now signed to Prosthetic Records, this self-titled release was produced by Unearth's Ken Susi.
Yes, it's metalcore. And yes, everyone knows how you hate metalcore. Everyone's heard how you don't consider it metal, let alone music. So if you have a thought in your head that's even close to "oh god, metalcore", I encourage you to close your web browser and punch yourself in the groin as punishment for being an elitist in a genre that's ridiculous to begin with.
Without a doubt though - the drum beats, the breakdowns, the vocals - Invocation of Nehek come from a hardcore background, but not a narrow minded one. With the descending melodies contained in "Sever The Leech", it's plainly obvious that the members of this band share influences from a wide variety of all sorts of metal genres. The song touches on a NWOBHM melody, moves on to brutal death metal, and then gradually falls apart at the end in an impressive display of timing. I'll admit I don't care for the samples that are injected into the song, but that's a minor complaint. On "Drawing Blood From A Stone", the band slows down every so often to gather themselves and build up for a emotion-charged collapse, however, they don't sporadically burst into singsong passages like a lot of the so-called stalwarts of the metalcore genre. The gigantic breakdown is executed adeptly and the song ceases on a heavy note, paving a sturdy path to the instrumental, "My Gift To Liars (introduction)". The actual song begins as vicious melodic death metal, adds a brief but interesting breakdown, and advances into more harmonies before fading out with ringing guitar playing. I don't know why they split up the introduction and the actual song, as they could've just formed it into an enjoyable 7 minutes. For those of you skeptical of the authenticity of the band or even the genre of metalcore itself, take a listen to "Memoirs Of A Drowned Angel", which begins with a tough dissonant hardcore beat and almost turns into livid black metal for a few brief moments. A wrench in the cogs of consistency, "A Pictures Worth" begins with really high-pitched sung vocals. Although pleasant for the few seconds they last, they don't make an appearance anywhere else throughout the record - making me wonder what purpose they serve except to alarm potential fans. Again though, they erupt into a blasting pseudo-black metal that outshines the previous befuddlement generated....before hitting you with the same vocals again. Not something I would've done, but at least it's performed with enough aptitude to keep you listening.
Invocation of Nehek haven't released an album of the year, but they've managed to get their name out on a respectable label with an equally respectable debut. They say it's impossible to please everyone, but with the amount of time changes and influences the band showcases, they're probably coming as close as you can get. Unfortunately though, this selling point is also somewhat of a weakness, as occasionally you get lost if you're not paying attention. If the band focuses a little more on songwriting and less on variation, the next time around, I'm confident they'll crush their peers.
