Nociceptor

Nociceptor are the brainchild of Threat Signal's Travis Montgomery. The new EP, Among Insects, follows 2008's The Sum of all Scars and is the first the band have released since signing with Pivotal Alliance. Nociceptor's technical thrash sound could almost be described as "robot metal": nearly every song has a similar progression of steady, efficient, double-time riffs. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but there aren't many surprises on Among Insects and songs blend together. One noticeable aspect about Nociceptor is their tendency to indulge in melodic vocals. Historically there are two potential problems with melodic vocals in heavy music: they can either be poorly executed or ill conceived. Bands like Slipknot have done an excellent job navigating this terrain while maintaining a pummelling sound. On Among Insects, Nociceptor suffer from both of these problems, as otherwise ferocious songs lose steam and focus during their melodic vocal sections. JD Schmidt's bristling screams are solid throughout Among Insects, but the band don't list any one member as backup vocalist; I'm not surprised no one wants to take credit. Otherwise, the band sound solid: Travis Montgomery and Joey Bartoli show their technical skills with some excellent solo work, most notably on "Angus McGillicutty." Meanwhile, Scott Allen (bass) and Michael Eskandari (drums) maintain the reliable pulse underpinning each track.