The Great Collapse

The self-titled full-length debut from Toronto's the Great Collapse combines death metal riffs with a prog-metal style. The chugging guitars start strong in "The Constant" and remain so throughout the album, but with intervals of progressive tempo changes. Produced by guitarist Luke Roberts, the Great Collapse's self-released effort is impressive. The highly structured guitar work, especially in "The Eternal Pull," as well as Cameron Warrack's blast-beat drumming are the album's most notable qualities. The only questionable aspect are the clean vocals, which take away from the death metal heaviness in songs like "Devolve." But in "A Big Bright Tomorrow" and "Pawns of Genocide," both of which containing no clean vocals, Angela Wheeler highlights her incredible talent for ominous growls, making these tracks the album's best.