Kiss The Cynic

Formed out of the ashes of New Jersey technical terrorists Luddite Clone, Kiss The Cynic should easily escape the "Dillinger clone” tag Luddite was unfairly labelled with and hopefully achieve the success that eluded them. With the bar set incredibly high for technically proficient metal bands hailing from New Jersey, it’s not Dillinger that Kiss The Cynic resembles on this strong debut but a more ferocious Burnt By The Sun. Kiss The Cynic’s self-titled debut five-song EP is a blend of crushing death metal and up-tempo thrash mania, but with a more focused and damaging structural slant, bile-drenched vocals, constant tempo shifts and better production/playing than Luddite ever had, clearly backing up their "more professional” focus. Never seduced by musical overindulgence, a fault of so much metal, despite the musical complexity on display, Kiss The Cynic eschews pointless solos and meandering digressions to go right for the jugular. With the exception of the pointless but mildly amusing "hidden” track, Kiss The Cynic’s self-titled debut should see them snatched up post-haste.