THE HIRSCH EFFEKT

Kollaps LONGBRANCH

Freewheeling Hannover tech-heads find delirium in unpredictability

Who’d have thought a band doling out untameable prog-math compositions, and in their native German tongue, would catch on with folks on such a grand scale? Five albums in, the trio’s frenzied aesthetic – drawing inspiration from classical to Dillinger Escape Plan – continues to test limits. Kris’s opening salvo of driving riffs and Easternscale programming, and the manic time signatures of System Of A Downmeets-prog Deklaration

that lead into simple yet hypnotic choruses and polyrhythmic leads, and the chaotic ambience of the title track all surge with genre-hopping beauty. Caustic yet compelling, Kollaps traverses the spectrum from headscratching complexity to scathing vitriol. If you have a penchant for the unpredictable, be prepared to get carried away. ■■■■■■■■■■

FOR FANS OF: The Mars Volta, Sikth, The Dillinger Escape Plan

SOPHIE MAUGHAN years ever happened. As soon as the opening jaunty piano and falsetto harmonies of Revolution

make you check you’ve not accidentally pressed play on an ELO album, Sudden Death marks a perfect storm of earnest conviction and eccentric creative energy across each of its 52 spookily time-warped minutes. Each song turns up different avenues of 70s inspiration, from Camel-ish prog synths and Wishbone Ash-flavoured sprightly twin guitar harmonies to soul strings and sax, new wave sass and country twangs, all deployed with levels of upbeat joy, fullthrottle zeal and obsessive charm that even Horisont have never hit before. ■■■■■■■■■■

FOR FANS OF: Witchcraft, Eddie Money, Kansas

CHRIS CHANTLER divide between extreme guttural slam-worship and the sinister charms of the ancient masters. Sonically barbarous and heavier than most current news bulletins, Nascency is one terrifying brute of a debut. ■■■■■■■■■■

FOR FANS OF: Dyscarnate, Suffocation, The Black Dahlia Murder

DOM LAWSON