OneMetal.com REVIEW:
Tardive Dyskinesia – The Sea Of See Through Skins

According to Wikipedia (that wonderful repository of all earthly knowledge), tardive dyskinesia is a medical condition categorised by involuntary, repetetive movements, manifesting as a side-effect of long term or high-dose usage of dopamine antagonists, usually antipsychotics.It’s a strangely apt disease that this Greek math-metal quintet have chosen as their monicker, as Tardive Dyskinesia‘s music seems to be characterised by spasmodic, jerky riffage, switching from tempo to time signature to stuttering, syncopated passage with unpredictable élan. The Sea Of See Through Skins (trying saying that ten times fast with a mouth full of peanut butter) is the band’s second album, and sees them taking their Meshuggah-esque polyrhythmic bludgeonings and infusing them with a surprising level of melody.

The record was mixed and mastered at Second Sight Studios in Holland by progressive/math-metal act Textures guitarist, Jochem Jacob – and his skills behind the desk have given a punishing weight to Tardive Dyskinesia‘s sound, propelling the downtuned, lockstep riffage and clattering drums with palpable force, whilst allowing the more melodic, restrained moments on the album to shine. In fact, it’s this interplay between diverse feels within the songs that lifts Tardive Dyskinesia above simply being a regurgitation of their influences. For instance, check out the section of third track ‘Downfall’ that begins 4 minutes in – mid-tempo drumming, arpeggiated low-gain guitars, and a woozy, sea-sick sort of psychedelia that builds to a staccato-riffed crescendo, before switching to a lurching, groovy feel. See also the Strapping Young Lad-esque epicness of ‘Brains Trust’ – the closing moments unleashing howling, reverbed, wind-tunnel cries, a restrained, deliberate drumbeat, ethereal synths and elegant pianos with a driving, yet uncomplicated riff.

The band don’t forget to bring the heavy while all this stylistic flim-flammery is going on, however – right after ‘Brains Trust’ comes ‘Ask E Sea’, a track pretty much entirely constructed of brutally clipped palm-muted riffage, shifting up and down tempo gears like some malevolent construction of chains and cogs, chewing up the ground between itself and the listener with a fearful relentlessness. Overall, then, this is definitely an album recommended for fans of any of the bands mentioned so far in the review – one that manages to combine technically demanding instrumental parts, unconventional song structures and a heavy, oppressive atmosphere with more accessible melodic leanings and a futuristic, otherworldly vibe.

Tardive Dyskinesia’s Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/tardivedyskinesia
Coroner Records’ Website: http://www.coronerrecords.net

Bottom Line

A math-metal offering that deftly balances technicality and listenability to extremely satisfying effect.