Every so often I randomly come across a band by pure accident or chance that happens to blow me the fuck away. I usually never hear any praise for them, and they slip under most people’s radios with very little fanfare. Anomalous is such a band.

I heard from an acquaintance that Anomalous played technical brutal death metal, but the description ended there. No references to if it used Dying Fetus-inspired groove, went the neo classical route of Necrophagist, confounded the listener with the bizarre riffing of Gorguts and Negativa, or simply blasted it’s way to oblivion like the plethora of death metal bands out there. Going into the 5-track Cognitive Dissonance EP I had very little hope, being the skeptical jackass I am.

Clocking in at a little less than half an hour, making it closer to a short full length than a traditional EP, Cognitive Dissonance is fucking phenomenal. Indeed, the description aptly fits, but the music hits everything from Cynic and Alarum to Ion Dissonance and Atheretic to even a tad bit of Gorguts. This release flings around mathematical riffing, traditional technical guitar work, every worthy brutal death metal convention, and some marvelous synth use without giving into the cheesier aspects of prog, the tepid drumming of most drum-machine driven bands, or the increasingly popular reliance on hardcore conventions.

Anomalous has excellent guitar work that is rigid, complex, and most importantly brutal without becoming stale and vapid. The band has no qualms with writing catchy, infectious solos and mixing them in with Cynic-influenced atmospheric effects or the occasional symphonic synth here or there. The key is their prudence: hit it at the right moment, supply enough, and then pull out before the moment is lost. Rinse, wash, and repeat. There’s no over-reliance on shredding and the mellow parts are in such a dearth that even the most ardent "br00tal" fan will have no problem with them. The drumming is capably handled by a drum machine and- like Fuck… I’m Dead and others- serves as a perfect example how to do drum programming: vary up the arrangement and use instances of straight blast with appropriateness. The vocal delivery is perfectly suited to the band’s melodic yet brutal approach: one very coherent screamer off-set by your necessary guttural growler. The closest thing I can compare to Anomalous would be an American version of Coprofago, but with less emphasize on Meshuggah (though still heavily present), a tempered flavoring of Ion Dissonance, and a firm beef injection of brutality.

This is the best debut I’ve heard from a band in awhile and surprisingly people are relatively quiet about Anomalous. If the final track "Revelations" doesn’t grab you, then you must be fucking dead. If you haven’t started 2007 with picking up a copy of Cognitive Dissonance, it’s imperative you do so. NOW.

Review byNecro-tron