Review of Moker - Translating The Pain

You know, as fast as a lot of bands were to jump on the metalcore and deathcore bandwagons, it seems like they are just as fast to jump off, as bands like Job For A Cowboy and Beneath The Massacre have streamlined their sound and all but abandoned their breakdown-laden pasts. Add Moker to that list. The band was formed in 2003 when two members of metalcore outfit Linchpin wanted to explore the more brutal side of their influences and opted to form a separate entity for their mangled muse. In the past, bits and pieces of metalcore influence found their way into their sound, however Translating the Pain is purely a brutal death metal album through and through.

It has only been a year since their 2006 split with fellow Belgians Outcast, but Moker have already made vast improvements in their approach to modern brutal death metal. As stated above, their tendency to fall back on breakdowns when they couldn't think of anything else has basically vanished, to be replaced by a renewed sense of creativity, a greater focus on fast, almost grindy blasting, and a tighter, more technical feel overall. I give partial credit to a beefy, clear production that was missing from the split, but I'd be willing to wager that most of the more mature, professional sound came from a lot of practice. Hell, even the packaging and presentation received a major overhaul, so if you were familiar with that split you can basically throw what you think you know about Moker out the window.

Throughout Translating the Pain, it is easy to see Moker admire countrymates Aborted. Their mix of brutal death and grind influences coupled with a liberal use of pinch harmonics, heavy grooves, and the occasional nod toward melodic territory are all out of the Aborted handbook, though there is a sense of energy and vigor present that the last few Aborted discs have been missing. The subtle melody and quick staccato riffing of "False Reality" and "Stuck In A Pattern" are great examples of the intensity these Belgians bring to the table. Closer "Last Note" is a bit of an oddball, yet it works really well in closing out the album memorably with its strange acoustic injections, catchy melodic riffing and crushingly heavy grooves.

Seriously, it's hard to believe this is the same band from the Outcast split. In about a year Moker has gone from a deathcore act on the low end of average to a very professional sounding death metal machine poised to give the major players in the genre a run for their money. I would not be at all surprised if this debut leads to a big time deal with a big time label. From what I understand, these guys are making a substantial impact in Europe and with the proper push could start to make waves over here as well. If you only buy a few brutal death discs a year, you should make Translating the Pain one of your 2007 purchases.

Release Details

Moker

Translating The Pain

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