MOURNMAKER: ETERNAL CONSTRICTION ALBUM REVIEW
Mournmaker is a Deathcore band from Meanjin/Brisbane, debuting in 2024 with the single 'Snake Skin'. Mournmaker has returned with their premiere Album 'Eternal Constriction'. "Mournmaker thrives on themes of despair, mortality and the darker side of the human experience. Their music balances unrelenting brutality with dynamic songwriting, creating a sound that is oppressive, vengeful and melancholic." With eight tracks to go over, we have a lot to cover, so prepare your stank face and let's get straight into it. Nothing can grow, Nothing can become, Nothing ever changes, What's done is, Done, Can I start again, Please, Or is this it. First
up for the Album is the Title track Eternal Constriction. Eternal Constriction is a tale of a person who has lost themselves and is held by the concept of what they could have become. This track could easily resonate with someone suffering from mental health issues or addiction. Musically the song takes you on a journey of chaos and pain, as you are dragged into the crushing pit of despair. Vocally Adam has a clear tone that makes it easy to understand the lyrics through his varied vocal techniques, while expressing grief and anguish throughout the performance. Marching to my death, Who I could have been, I will never get to fucking see, What I won't become, Endless Pain, What's done is done, There is no closure.
They will turn to dust, just like the rest of us, Throwing riches to the skies, surely you must realise, Peaking through the veil of corruption, eyes wide shut to your own destruction, Blissful ignorance, not confusion, Deaf and blind to your own delusion. Next is, Venomous Sermon. Musically Venomous Sermon carries through the non-stop intense drums, chunky bass and chaotic guitars of Eternal Constriction, however the sound shifts to something more open and aggressive. The use of soft guitars before the breakdown is polarising and gives a moment of pause before being thrown back into the mayhem. Adam consistently switches between his high and low registers keeping you on edge and unsure of where you will be taken next. Venomous Sermon calls you to action to overthrow your dictators as you realize they are untrustworthy weak liars with nothing but greed in their hearts. If this isn't a protest song for the current political climate, I don't know what is. Forked tongue flickering venomous sermon, vile and sickening wretched vermin, Death will come for you and old, desecration of your soul, There is nothing behind their eyes, no salvation, There is nothing behind their eyes, surely you must realise.
A life of hubris has left a stain on you, A life so fruitless will rot you through and through, You think there's honour amongst thieves? Watch your back. Up next is Sunburn features Dead Nerve Vocalist Brodie Servin. Everyone knows that one person who has stepped over every person they have met to get what they desire in life, and Sunburn is a scornful stripping down as they meet their fate given punishment. Sunburn hits with Deathcore Oli Sykes nostalgia as you are thrown this way and that by Adam and Brodie, their vocals falling seamlessly within one another in styles. The instrumentals for Sunburn hit like the ultimate baby of Lamb of God and early Suicide Silence, as you are dragged through the groove and circle pit worthy beat. You flew too close to the sun and you burnt everyone, You've planted rotten seeds, seeds of doubt, Now you're next to leave, when you meet the ground.
Like moths to a flame two souls circulate, Lives just out of frame, yet they share a fate, To leave this mortal plane, weightless as they levitate, As they watch their flesh decay, ignorant to time’s insistence, Their loves finds a way, transcending this frail existence. The next time I have someone tell me that Metal music is just noise and yelling with no depth I am going to show them One Last Dance. As a notorious hopeless romantic, it is always the joy of my day when I find a love story in metal form, and today was my luck day. The story of two lovers final moments together plays out with a siren call of guitar riffs, double kicks and a vocal track filled with longing and passion. Locked in one final embrace, a glimpse of heaven in this empty space, As they take their final breaths, light recedes into the depths, Locked in one final embrace, lovers entombed face to face.
Cries of anguish fall on deaf ears, I shall vanquish all they hold dear, Drifting through the River Styx, crossing souls off the list, Embracing pain is their only option, they need to recognise their final destination, Eternal torment, sealed away and forgotten, shell-shocked captives, squirm through, amputation, Severed ties, all they know they leave behind. We hit the ground at full force once more as we move into the push pit anthem Mutilated. Mournmaker have hit the nail on the head with the mandatory grotesque horror track, with machine gun double kicks, arse shaking guitars and gutteral vocals. The artful pauses through the track give the listener a second to breathe before you are flung right back into the mayhem. Beasts of damnation rip and tear at spoilt flesh, Jaws grinding bone to dust, they long for something fresh, Revelling in blood-lust, they deserve nothing less, Unlucky souls, suffering eternal death.
I just want to die, This pain will not subside, Time weighs down my bones, Light fades as darkness grows, What I should have done, Stuck in slow motion, Always in the same place. What I Should Have Done is met with a trigger warning. Lyrically What I Should Have Done is the heaviest of the Album as the character begs for death as relief from the situation their life has become. I had shivers run through my body as Adam's anguish filled screams of "Kill Me" overtook the track. You are immediately greeted with an ethereal sense of calm as you fall under the weight. One final hoorah of outlashing emotion brings you to the conclusion of the track. Wait to die, I just want to die, This pain will not subside, Time weighs down my bones, Light fades as darkness grows, I'm just waiting to die, what if I had just tried?
Mankind's disgrace, lying, conniving, groveling two face, Selfish existence, depravity, no resistance, Plucked from the rat’s nest, Perched atop a tower of vermin, Flourishing in filth, they saw you as their best. Scumfuck is a dis-track for the rat in your life. If you are looking for a healthy place to put your anger at the scummy person who messed you over, you have found it in Scumfuck. The track is filled with fierce guitar, pummelling drums and a vocal performance so intense you will be questioning if you are the rat Mournmaker is talking about. There are several points throughout the song with a whirring guitar accent that will serve as a warning alarm for the subject of your rage. Look, it’s all over your face, how did you fall so far? Everyone will see, just how rotten you are, I see it too, behold the king of the rats, I see it too, behold the king of the rats.
Stench of death, lost souls, rotting flesh, casts the mould, Armour shining bright, it takes the enemy by surprise, Swords reflecting light, these are the Instruments of demise, Faith has been weaponized, it echoes in the soldiers cries, Merciless genocide, the slain infested with rats and flies. Eternal Constriction finishes on Shadows and Dust, a social commentary piece on the blind game of follow-the-leader that society has become. With discussions of genocide, weaponized faith, corrupt government, invisible overlords and needless death of soldiers in never ending wars, Shadows and Dust aims a spotlight at the major issues of today. Adam begs to be heard through pain stricken and pleading vocals, while instrumentally the track is all consuming with frustration, rage and anguish ever present as you flow through the track. The switching tempos give the impression of outbursts to society as the band cries out to be heard. Bloodshed soaks the earth, Spilled with the promise of grace, puppets in an endless war, Marching for a faceless king, who has seen it all before, Generations ripped apart, bloodshed soaks the earth.
Mournmaker has produced an incredibly dynamic work of music, with shifting styles, musical talent that demands your attention and a variety of subjects that prove they do not shy away from difficult to talk about issues.
Mournmaker will be performing alongside Violent Conflict as they launch their EP Silhouette of a Saint, on November 13th at Tomcat; tickets available at the link.
For Fans Of: Whitechapel, Fit For An Autopsy, As Blood Runs Black and Thy Art Is Murder
9.5/10
Comments