CASSIUS

A lot of relentless pummel, pinches of dissonance, and elements of Swedecore, and none of its sounds like anything more than a noisy, semi-technical metalcore band. No, it doesn't suck; it doesn't soar either. "I am Jim Jones" from Virginia's CASSIUS sounds like a lot of the tougher metalcore bands you've been hearing for the past couple of years, especially on a roster like Germany's Lifeforce. Slice and dice it any way you'd like and you will still be hard-pressed to find much here that will leave a lasting impression or that separates itself from the roving packs of MC dogs.

So ok, if it is crushing heaviness that you want, CASSIUS offers up a lot of it. The boys also incorporate the occasional clever nuance, such as the subtly melodic guitar line heard in the background of a battering ram (many of these tracks could be characterized as such) called "Homeauxthug" before it kicks into a more traditional bout of Swedish-tinged metalcore. A hearty "fuck you!" during the breakdowny chug of "Skingraft", along with the occasional death growl, are two indications of the band's pissed off demeanor and ACACIA STRAIN heaviness (to some extent anyway). The rather serene piano part in the middle of "Tale of the Leper" is a nice touch I suppose, but really only serves to break up what ultimately becomes rather boring; the same goes for atmospheric instrumental interlude "Elate and Subtract". A louder and less muddy sound mix would have helped a good deal.

The bitch of it is that CASSIUS almost gets there at times, but always seems to fall short. The violence is real and the effort is somewhat laudable, yet the songs never make a big enough impact no matter how many times you spin this baby. I even gave it a few extra spins just to make sure I wasn't missing some magical ingredient that hadn't yet been revealed; it never showed up. In the final analysis, "I Am Jim Jones" is a mediocre product at best.