Hello and welcome to the newest Decibel series Blast Worship, a feature which will aim to shed light on some of the best and most up-and-coming grindcore bands the underground has to offer. This week’s group is Cognizant.
Where are they from?: Dallas, Texas.
Sound like: Their official Facebook describes the music as “dark, angular grind” which, honestly, is pretty damn accurate. The drummer is the much esteemed Bryan Fajardo of P.L.L. and Noisear. Cognizant sounds very similar to the latter of those groups, combining the most angular elements of sci-fi tech death with the trigger-happy velocities of Jon Chang’s various projects, all executed with a somber and oppressive atmosphere.
Why the hype?: This band probably played my favorite set at Maryland Deathfest this year, which is rather remarkable considering that I was completely unfamiliar with their music. Fajardo is obviously a beast but equally deserving of praise is vocalist Bevin Boark who gave a forceful and commanding live performance.
Latest release: A split release with Bad Rites. The four songs on their side of the split really are the quintessential Cognizant tracks, even if this is only their second release.
Favorite track: “Oratorio In Grey,” a Discordance Axis cover released this past July as a one-off. More and more bands have recently taken to covering Jon Chang and company, but in my opinion this is the first D. Axis cover to truly nail the chaos of the source material while also finding a feel that’s unique to the band itself.
