Album Review: TesseracT - 'One'

Boy, Meshuggah must be kicking themselves they didn't trademark their identifiable djent sound back in the band's infancy. You can just imagine all the royalties that would be making there way into the group's collective pockets right now.

No matter which way look at it, 'Djent' is metal's current buzz word. If the tail-end of last year didn't get the point across, then what's been presented to listeners this year certainly has. Periphery, Animals as Leaders, Born of Osiris et al. It's the new metal movement.

You can already see that it will, much like metalcore and deathcore before it, eventually lead to every man and his dog having a go at the sound. Thankfully, UK upstarts, TesseracT are not the ones to begin this shift. What the band presents is still raw, innovative and polished enough to come across as genuine and not derived from a mountain of similar artists.

Some may label this Meshuggah with softer vocals but that is too simplistic and in many ways disrespectful to both bands. While most groups cultivating this 'djent' style are favouring a strong metal sound with it, TesseracT are slightly different. Their sound seemingly incorporates 'world' themes and elements giving it a stark, contrastive feel. Essentially, it is a different tone and texture.

Those who have been following TesseracT will already be accustomed to this album in part, with a number of songs previously featuring on last year's EP 'Concealing Fate'.

This debut studio album, like most first up releases is a little patchy in places but overall quite solid. 'Nascent' stands on its own feet and represents what TesseracT offers quite well. The rhythm section a strong point. Concurrently, 'Deception: Concealing Fate part 2' has a melodic and lasting chorus, which is capped off with what one can only describe as technical/prog metal's version of a breakdown. Closer, 'Eden' is the marathon track, coming in at nine minutes.

This sound can commonly come attached with a pretentious and narcissistic style where musicians use lair in a manner that suggests they just want to show-off by playing the hardest scales and/or rhythms possible. Thankfully 'One' is totally devoid of such notions, with the release favouring subtly, mood and atmosphere rather than loud, arrogant over-playing. The band knows when to indulge with technical passages and they equally know when to strip it back and deliver a straight forward approach. It's tech/prog metal with a conscience.

An intriguing exercise on when to indulge and when to temper your musical approach. Light, rock elements are mixed with a technical metal side to form 'One'. As far as debut albums go, this is quite well-formed giving the impression that TesseracT have a bright future indeed.

1. Lament 


2. Nascent 

3. Acceptance: Concealing Fate - Part 1

4. Deception: Concealing Fate - Part 2 


5. The Impossible: Concealing Fate - Part 3 


6. Perfection: Concealing Fate - Part 4 


7. Epiphany: Concealing Fate - Part 5 


8. Origin: Concealing Fate - Part 6 


9. Sunrise 


10. April 


11. Eden