Progressive death metal traces its origins to the seminal 1991 Human LP by Death. But not all offshoots come from this source. Gorguts are influential on the dissonant strain of prog death, and Edge of Sanity took it in a more eclectic direction in the 1990s. Finnish quintet, Denominate, belong to the dissonant camp that emerged in French-speaking Canada. Now on album number three, they last released a record six years ago. Are they bringing anything new to the conversation?
They waste no time finding the disjointed groove with hissing guitar intervals and a gargling bass line in opener, ‘The Loathe Process’. Denominate’s vocalist approaches the microphone with vitriol rather than the monosyllabic caveman technique that does much to make the genre unlistenable. The chords vibrate like combustible objects under the shadow of a match. One surprising thing here is the way the band avoid long non-repeating parts and sudden changes of tempo. Even the guitar solo feels natural rather than forced thanks to the consistency of the rhythm underneath. The melodic shades of this music rely on forceful tremolo patterns beholden to black metal.
Throbbing arpeggios ring out like the static frequencies of an analogue television in ‘Husk’, yet they introduce an intriguing counter vocal steeped in the higher baritone range of singing. Thankfully, Denominate avoid the temptation to employ blast beats when they run out of ideas, though they sometimes flirt with them. The drummer spends most of his time grinding through the eighth notes. One thing death metal does well is claustrophobia, but that also means the listener remains in a permanent state of anxiety. There’s only so much you can absorb before you yawn and wonder how many bands rely on Voivod’s dissonant style as the foundation for their metal fantasies. Much of this will appeal to nobody outside the guitarist community. Subtle offbeats and pockets of tasty bass fills are not enough to entertain those of us that want more than unmelodious and experimental chords wrapped in malevolence. ‘Of Passing’ is only memorable because it dares to use a call-and-response vocal arrangement at the end.
If we deconstruct a song like ‘Liminal’ down to its parts, it’s clear we must spend most of the time praising the guitarwork. In all fairness, the musicianship is superb if we judge it from a technical perspective. The bass and drums operate together in simple unison like a pilot and his wingman, yet they must also be aware of the wandering guitars and accent them with expertise. This song is one of the few times when they break out of the stinging distortion and bring the dynamics down to a calm strum of acoustic textures. Listen how they introduce the prog bass upstrokes to re-establish a spacious groove back into the atonal metal turbulence near the end.
The prospect of another seventeen minutes of this for the last two tracks will make you sigh. ‘The Cistern’ aims for the emotional ripple effect with uplifting chord timbres. Its chivalrous dual-harmony vocals are shaky but sincere, and they see you through to the three-minute mark with ease. You might even hear Gojira’s finger-tapping pathos of ‘Global Warming’ in the passage that follows. Likewise, the jazzy metal formations of ‘Restoration’ are impressive, but this music has no charisma. There’s little else to do but glance at your watch and wait for the end once you’ve acknowledged its complexities and admired the progressive musicianship.
Kirk Houghton
Verdict
Release Date: 09/01/2026
Record Label: Dusktone
Standout tracks: The Loathe Process; Liminal
Suggested Further Listening: Ulthar – Providence (2020), Hissing – Hypervirulence Architecture (2022), Contemplator – Morphose (2022)