Origin: Chaosmos

Celebrating their 25th anniversary as a band, Topeka Kansas natives Origin have returned with their 9th full-length album, Chaosmos. Anyone familiar with the more brutal end of technical death metal will have a good idea about what to expect from these veterans. Origin have consistently produced albums that are dazzling displays of controlled chaos, extreme aggression and total unadulterated insanity, of course all executed with total instrumental expertise and precision.

On Chaosmos the guys have not messed with the formula that has made them synonymous with technical brutality and extremity in a genre that by its very nature is already extreme. They open with the tremolo picking insanity of “Ecophagy� and immediately that familiar controlled chaos is in full effect. The title track follows with drummer John Longstreth burning a whole in his kick drum, doing what he does best to add the insanity to Paul Ryan's blistering riffing. The song has a slowed down (except the drums) breakdown at the end which feels a bit pointless and unnecessary but overall it's a cool track. “Cogito, Tamen Non Sum'' which is latin for “I think, yet I am not� and deals with themes of artificial intelligence and the potential disastrousness of that path. Musically the song is fine but it's the outro that really made the hairs stand up on my arms. It just sounds so heavy and demonic and is the essence of evil death metal. On the following track “Panoptical� Origin feels their most teetering on the edge of self destruction, but manage to keep it all together with sheer creativity in the face of destruction, while exploring themes of despotism. It’s from this point going forward that Chaosmos really began to kick into another gear and grab my attention. “Decolonizer� brings a groove into the attack that was lacking on the previous tracks, of course while also retaining the insanity and bludgeoning. Probably the standout track on the album for me. They follow this up will “Cullscape� which continues the themes of humanity’s brutality to itself and is another descent into the bowels of death metal perfection. “Nostalgia For Oblivion� is another stand out and only strengthens my opinion that Chaosmos is back loaded. This time a moodier track but no less heavy and perhaps even more evil sounding than the even more technical material on the album. Finally they close it out with the epic 11 minutes of “Heat Death� and again it’s an exercise in the extreme.

Unlike many of their contemporaries in the technical Death Metal sphere, Origin have been able to emphasize the Death Metal element of their sound more than most. The music is a mind-bending display of technical prowess but the bludgeoning and brutal heaviness sounds so evil and intimidating that it captures the true essence of Death Metal perfectly. Chaosmos doesn’t really bring anything new to the table for Origin but it does offer an awesome ride into the void of hellish space and time nightmares that are certain to pummel your cranium into dust.

Line-up:
Jason Keyser - vocals
Paul Ryan - guitars/vocals
Mike Flores - bass/vocals
John Longstreth - drums

Tracklisting:
1. Ecophagy
2. Chaosmos
3. Cogito, Tamen Non Sum
4. Panoptical
5. Decolonizer
6. Cullscape
7. Nostalgia for Oblivion
8. Heat Death

Added: September 24th 2022
Reviewer: Benjamin Dudai
Score:
Related Link: Band Facebook Page
Hits: 648
Language: english

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