Review: Neckbreakker Break Nekks with Some Serious Riffage on Within the Viscera
This album wastes no time in getting right to the good stuff, so in that same spirit, I won’t waste any time faffing about either. Within the Viscera, the debut full-length from Danish newcomers Neckbreakker is, to put it simply, really fucking cool, and a joy to listen to.
Sure, the band name is a little cheesy, but those who would roll their eyes at it and give it a pass as a result would be doing themselves a massive disservice. They would be missing out on some really smartly written and heavy-hitting tunes that perfectly blend the aesthetics of top-shelf thrash, death metal, hardcore, and grind, and it truly would be their loss. This shit is just plain fun, no two ways about it.
There isn’t a single moment on this entire album that feels wasted or drawn out for the sake of filler, just a nonstop parade of punchy riffs, tasteful and unexpected stop-go transitions, sludgy breakdowns, and the occasional tasty solo or melodic lead to spice things up as needed. The first song “Horizon of Spikes” hits the ground sprinting with some mid-paced blast beats over a sustained dissonant chord, and then quickly shifts into a supremely groovy chugging riff that is practically impossible not to bang your head along to, and it refuses to let up from there on out. After relentlessly beating the listener over the head for three straight minutes, the feedback rings out as if to wrap things up, but right when the music seems like it’s about to cut out and make way for the next track (which also rules), a single booming thud from the drums announces the arrival of a slow, ferocious breakdown that is sure to be the cause of some kid’s black eye or broken nose at a live show in the near future.
The following song “Putrefied Body Fluid” has a decidedly more upbeat and thrashy atmosphere to it, but that does not mean that it loses any of the savagery that it worked so hard to build up during the previous track. Again, the grooves just do not stop, never once getting stale or repetitive due to the frequent and impeccably executed transitions, but also never getting ahead of itself, remaining squarely and comfortably in the pocket from start to finish. “Shackled to a Corpse” is decidedly slower, though not terribly so and definitely not in a boring way, just in the sense of finding their rhythm, getting onto the proverbial highway, and cruising for a bit to get a feel for the flow of traffic before kicking things back into high gear. Oh boy, here I go talking about pacing again.
But honestly, the sheer confidence and utter mastery of momentum on display here is truly remarkable, reflecting the wisdom and precision of bands far from their superior in terms of experience and miles traveled. Hell, there are bands that have been around for decades who have never sounded this good, but through grit, passion, and raw talent, Neckbreakker has created an amalgamation of all the best aspects of those classic ideals and created something that everyone should take heed of, both veterans and newcomers alike.
There is a pervasive, undeniable swagger that commands your attention the entire time, largely due to the incredible synergy between all of the members. Everyone is firing on all cylinders and completely locked in with each other, demonstrating not only the hours of meticulous rehearsal that had to have gone into writing this thing but also the fun that they clearly had while doing so. They took every band that has ever inspired them, from Cannibal Corpse to Napalm Death to Hatebreed to At the Gates and everything in between threw them all in a blender, sifted through the ensuing witches’ brew, refined it and cut it with their own youthful vigor (seriously, the drummer Anton Bregendorf is only 18, go to hell), and the end result is an instant classic that is sure to retain some serious staying power. You can quote me on that.
Albums like Within the Viscera are a stark, welcome reminder of just how exciting and flat out fun heavy metal is supposed to be. Not that it ever wasn’t, but in this day and age, with a lot of the luster being lost thanks to saturation and the ravages of time, not to mention stupid assholes of all kinds throughout the industry doing what stupid assholes do and ruining it for everyone else, it’s not hard to lose that initial childlike sense of wonder. At the very least, we tend to take it for granted sometimes, and although that’s certainly a good problem to have, this album is the smack upside the head that we need to bring us back down to Earth and remind us why we’re all here in the first place. This is what passion, real passion, sounds like.
If you’re looking for nasty breakdowns to catch an assault charge to, infectious grooves to bang your head along to, and killer riffs and shredding solos that make you want to shotgun a beer while crowd surfing, then this is the album for you. Within the Viscera has a little something for everyone who calls themselves a metalhead, and it’s one hell of a strong start for a young band with big dreams and some serious chops to back them up. I, for one, hope to see more from these guys in the future, because if they can keep this up, they’re gonna make waves and have people talking about them for quite some time.
Within the Viscera is available now via Nuclear Blast Records, order your copy here
