While the Emerald Isle might not be the first place you think of when it comes to extreme noise, Irish quintet Dichotomy are flying the Celtic flag high with their ferocious brand of melodic yet densely technical death metal.
Combining breathtakingly fluid fretwork that brings to mind the likes of Necrophagist and Obscura with a churning, destructive rhythm section, the sheer level of musicianship on show here is quite something to behold. There are some neat production touches, too, which frequently affords Paradigms layers of depth that can so easily be missing from records of this nature.
The one slight downfall is that Kevin O’Connor’s vocals begin to feel slightly one-dimensional as this LP wears on, but with such a broad instrumental vocabulary on show, this slack is more than picked up in other departments. In the end, it is Dichotomy’s dexterity, songwriting skill and clear understanding of pacing and structure that makes this a thoroughly compelling listen.
If you like your death metal tight, bludgeoningly technical and laden with no small amount of groove, you’re in for a treat.
