MEASURING THE ABSTRACT

There must be something in the water in Sweden, because they have been regularly cranking out quality metal acts for about twenty years now. Terminal Function are the latest addition to the Swedish roster, and they manage to match or surpass many of their countrymen on Measuring the Abstract, their debut album.

The music here sounds like something that might be the result of a jam session between Focus-era Cynic and fellow Swedes Meshuggah. This is a group who definitely wear their influences on their sleeve, most notably in the solos, some of which almost sound as if they're flowing from the fingertips of Fredrik Thordendal himself, but the end result is so good it's impossible to view that as a fault.

One of the most striking aspects of this record is the maturity of the songwriting. They sound as refined as a band who have spent decades polishing their craft, although maybe this shouldn't be so surprising - the group formed in 1998 and have been working hard ever since. The music is very technical and aggressive for the most part, with occasional synthesizers and calm, discordant jazzy sections providing breaks from the madness. Melody is used parsimoniously to maximum effect - perhaps most evident on the fantastic 'Room 101', in which the erratic guitar assault combines with furious drumwork and frantic vocals, building towards insanity before relenting in the face of a hook- laden chorus constructed around some gorgeous harmonized vocals. The skill of each member is quite clear, but it's drummer David Lindkvist who shines the brightest, with his mastery of challenging polyrhythms and complex percussive acrobatics underscoring the chaos flawlessly. Also of note are the compelling lyrics, dealing with subjects ranging from experiments in extrasensory perception gone wrong ('Remote Views') to attempts at artificially mass-producing human beings through cloning ('Spawn'). A great deal of time was spent perfecting every aspect of this release, and it's evident in the final product.

In a time where the metal landscape is studded and marred by vast legions of clone bands, copycats and unoriginal derivatives, Terminal Function are a group that dare to innovate. They have not merely raised the bar, they have smashed it to pieces. Any self-respecting metal fan owes it to themselves to check this release out, as this is a group of the highest caliber that seem poised to break through as one of the definitive bands of our generation.

"Measuring the Abstract" is the debut full-length studio album by Swedish technical/ progressive extreme metal act Terminal Function. The album was released through Willowtip Records in November 2008.

The music on the album is technical/progressive extreme metal with some jazzy Holdsworthian soloing (the solos are very similar to the style of playing byFredrik Thordendal from Meshuggah). The playing is generally very technically challenging and the tracks are complex (while still featuring an accessible vers/chorus element). The vocals are mostly aggressive but there are some clean parts and a few vocoder vocal parts too. While the music is pre-dominantly aggressive with fast and complex distorted riffing there are also some jazzy acoustic breaks and the above mentioned jazzy soloing in the music. The kind of semi-jazzy playing I associate with Cynic. There´re also keyboards in the music but they are mostly used to create atmosphere. Other references in addition to Meshuggah and Cynic are acts such as Atheist, Textures and especially fellow Swede progressive tech/extreme metal act Theory in Practice (the "The Armageddon Theories (1999)" album). There are 8 tracks on the album but "Auroral Display" is a 1:04 minutes long instrumental so there are actually only 7 "real" compositions on the album. The total playing time on "Measuring the Abstract" is 43:27 minutes though which is a perfect length for this kind of music IMO. All compositions are of high quality and the album appears consistent with a great flow.

The musicianship is excellent. These are very skilled musicians. Fast and varied drumming, great aggressive vocals (the clean vocals are not the best but they are decent) and razor sharp and intense riffing. The jazz element in their sound is also executed to perfection and adds the spice to their sound.

The production is excellent even though I could have wished that the aggressive vocals were a bit less processed. They are a bit over the top at times.

"Measuring the Abstract" is an excellent album in the progressive tech/extreme metal genre and fans of the above mentioned acts should definitely take a listen to this high quality album. It´s not the most original album I´ve heard in the genre but it´s a minor flaw that doesn´t take away the overall good impression I´ve gotten of Terminal Function. I´m sure their next album will show them developing a more personal sound. The genre so rarely sees new quality acts appear but I think we can safely expect great things from Terminal Function in the future. For now this is a great introduction to this new act and "Measuring the Abstract" fully deserves a 4 star (80%) rating.