In December 2021 I shared a new single from Indiana melodeath thrashers Death on Fire. Little did I know that in the new year the band would change names before officially releasing that single. Now they carve their way across America touring as Assimilator. The band mentions In Flames and Kreator as influences, and that’s evident throughout their self-titled record. But there’s also an atmosphere of downbeat darkness, and Rust Belt hardcore grit reminiscent of Ohio legends Ringworm. Assimilator’s eponymous album launches September 16th. But lucky for you, Decibel Magazine is streaming the whole thing for all you sinners a few days early.
“Burial Hymns” and “Dying Light” both highlight the band’s balance of aggression and emotional heft. The riffs are muscular, flexing a hard-edged sense of groove. Meanwhile, vocalist/guitarist Tim Kenefic bellows like a man possessed. “In a Hell of our Own Design” features Kenefic at his most unhinged, pairing his abyssal howls with the song’s closing sprint. “Like Whispers Singing” emerges as one of the album’s most contagious tracks with its harmonized leads. Soon after, closing track “Our Bitter End/Witch Hunter” assumes the throne as the record’s true showstopper. It’s a ripper that packs all of Assimilator’s influences into a piping-hot cauldron of riffs.
“We are super proud of this album,” the band says in a statement. “It has everything someone with good taste would want: riffs, solos, drums, vocals. It is a complete album and it is so good we may just stop writing music and quit while we are ahead. We hope you enjoy it, and if you don’t you might be a poser with terrible taste.”
Blast Assimilator’s burial hymns by pressing play below.
Pre-order Assimilator’s debut on Bandcamp HERE
Follow the band on Facebook for news and updates HERE
