The Apparati
Demo
8.2
The Apparati’s new demo clocks in at a mere nine minutes, so I’ll keep the writeup short. The band plays a relatively eclectic mix of hardcore, grind, death metal, and doom, and I like what they’re doing. The Apparati, who come from Pennsylvania, don’t seem interested in being tied down by one genre classification, and for this reason, they allow their sound to meander among the styles mentioned above. The vocals don’t stick to one genre either, sometimes being voiced as a hardcore style bark or sometimes as a low grunt, with sporadic clean vocals coming from the female keyboard player. This is another thing worth mentioning: even in the midst of an all out grind section, there are often slight synth overtones, which add an extra dimension to the music without sounding extraneous.
There’s always a surprise on this album, whether it’s the Southern stomp at the end of the first track, “Flight of the Living Dead,” or the video game blips that kick in for a moment on “Platypus Sound.” It’s good, it’s diverting, and the short length of the demo allows the listener to focus on a small chunk of material instead of being overwhelmed by too much of a good thing.
The musicianship is pretty strong on this release, as is the production. I was impressed that a band with six members was able to sound tight and focused, and indeed they do. I often wonder why a band has six members when three or four should be able to pull of the material, but in this case, it seems that each person is important to the band’s overall sound.
The Apparati aren’t exactly veterans of the scene, but if they continue to produce strong material in the same direction as the songs on this demo, I could see them developing a big following. Check this band out if you get the chance; there’s something for everyone in their style.
