Egregore - It Echoes in the Wild

Egregore is an extreme metal band from Canada, who formed in 2019.  Their latest album, “It Echoes in the Wild,” is their second full-length album.    I missed their first one, but I won’t ever miss an album from them ever again after hearing this insane piece of work.

Egregore could probably be described as blackened death or a combination therefore of but, really, anything goes on this album.  From one song to the next, and even from one second to the next within these songs, it is hard to tell where the next note is going to lead.  This album sort of reminds me of something Cephalic Carnage might but out but not as spastic or pretentious.  

I think the best way to describe the music contained within the album’s 10 song, 49-minute runtime is ‘controlled chaos.’  Everything is in constant motion across many different paths yet there is a certain amount of restraint to the songs that keeps everything seamless and coherent.  Instead of the walls coming down, these walls are at their very limits–constantly about to burst at the seams but instead of getting there, all these crazy ideas bounce around each other.  

The album benefits from the songs flowing into each other, making this an easy album to listen to from beginning to end.  With that being said, the often times unconventional structures and the general ‘fuck it’ attitude demands multiple listens—trust me, you’ll discover something new every time.  The devil is in the details, right?  Well, this album is fucking Satan then.  

The intro song, “Cast Adrift,” seems like it might just be pointless noise, but it quickly evolves into a short but sweet ride that perfectly sets up the first full song, “Voice on the West Wind.”

The riffs that open the song are far catchier that I could have ever expected then they turn far more intense than I ever expected.  It’s thrashy as well but even through the chaos the bass is audible—and sounds fantastic.  Soon, the guitars throw out a couple twisted solos—-and all this under three minutes into a nearly six-minute song.  The vocals are straight up killer: blackened rasps, abrasive growls—-it’s all here and on full display.

“Craven Acts of Desperate Men,” throws down an immediate brutal jam session—extreme metal doesn’t often sound this infectious but yet here we are. Riffs, riffs, and more riffs.  The entire time, the drums sound like they might be ready to launch into outer space, such is their power and unbridled fury while they steer this ship where it needs to go.  Apparently, that includes King Diamond style vocals because of reasons, but they sound great as another piece of this puzzling insanity.  The lead guitar is searing as the riffs, and the entire mid-section of this song is the soundtrack to having a brain hemorrhage while falling down three flights of stairs (compliment). 

“Corsairs of the Daath Gulf,” is a short song that could be an interlude but it’s really just an audio explosion in under two minutes.  Hammering rhythms, biting leads, maniacal laughter, and even some groove near the end make it obvious that if it went on any longer, my ears might not survive. 

All this madness leads directly into one of my favorite songs on the album, “Nightmare Cartographer.”  The echo on the vocals is *chef’s kiss* and sounds evil as hell.  A metric ton of groove, held together by speed that sounds like it’s spiraling out of control, make this one of the more frantic and crazy songs on the album—and that is saying something.  The mid-section might be what I could call melodic, but it is just as unhinged, but the ending of the song is explosive and packs more of a punch than some bands do in entire albums. 

The title track ends the album with a (nearly) 10-minute tour-de-force of all things extreme.  The beginning is melodic, but I can hear a bit of a traditional metal approach, briefly, just after the song enters a twilight zone of pure arcane brutality. Between the lead guitar and drums, this song almost drove me mad—it is quite the ride before the two-minute mark even passes.  After a brain busting solo around the 5:15 mark, the band throws in Spanish style flavoring.  At this point, why not?  Everything and anything this band wants to do on this album has worked.  Amazing. 

Egregore’s “It Echoes in The Wild,” is an adventurous, dynamic, ride that will give you whiplash while your body crumbles to dust and your mind collapses into madness.  Any fan of extreme metal needs to hear this album.  

Rating: Excellent