VIR-U-LENT/Adjective: (of a disease or poison) Extremely severe or harmful in its effects. Highly infectious. A brutal DEATHCORE band from Phoenix Arizona.

VIRULENT burst onto the Phoenix Metal Scene in 2011 with a “beautifully brutal” brand of metal. Some might classify them as Experimental/Melodic Deathcore, with some of their influences being the likes of Emmure, White Chappel and The Acacia Strain among others. While generally playing within a 4/4 count, Virulent however incorporate a bunch of poly-rhythmic time signatures within that framework – very much like Meshuggah, who are often regarded as the forefathers of very heavy, odd-time, poly-rhythmic metal.

It took me a few spins of this disc to truly grasp and understand what it was that I had before me. The Great Destroyer is an intelligently well written album with layer upon layer of complex composition. Basically this isn’t your typical meat-head metal, and these motherfuckers know how to play! A big thing that stands out to me about this album is the very skillful electronic programming of Matt Nisbet and Sawgy Kush. Nisbet (formally of local legends brik) along with Keith Piske crush with their 7 & 8 string chugging yet diverse dual guitar assault. The rhythmically complex drumming of Barrett Gardner gives Virulent an undeniable dynamic depth. Allan Foster’s bass work is as equally dynamic and fits the music perfectly. The Vocals of Mike Neve (formally of local heavyweights Torque & One Hit Kill) remind me of the muscle of Pro-Pain’s Gary Meskil, while his melodies are reminiscent of old school Chino Moreno work the Deftones. The Great Destroyer was amazingly Produced, Mixed and Mastered by Kurt Bickersteth with Matt Nisbet at Impact Studios.

Track 11: The Great Destroyer

EVERY TIME I HEAR THE GREAT DESTROYER I WANT TO COMMIT RANDOM ACTS OF VIOLENCE AND SO WILL YOU!!! (But don’t hit women or kids. Or other people.)

Click image for event page!

Virulent will be having their CD release show Friday December 7th at the Rocky Point Cantina in Tempe. Also on the bill are Pelvic Meatloaf, Autumn’s End, Inner Chaos, Bellicose, Disarming Adam and Obsrvr. This show is brought to you by 13th Floor Entertainment, is only $5 (!!!) and starts at 6:30 pm. BE THERE OR DIE!!!

DEATH WEDDLE \,,/