Oxford may be renowned for its University, libraries and views across the Thames but there’s a foul stench eking its way across the city and the culprits are A Trust Unclean with their new EP, ‘Reality Relinquished. The most cynical and jaded of Tech or Death metal fans won’t fail to get off on the five tracks contained within, and if you like your metal cut through with a generous dollop of groove then you’ll be find even more to get excited about.

This EP has got the lot; massive riffs, light-speed blastbeats, impressively guttural vocals, sick fucking artwork and some of the finest soloing in years. Opening track ‘Enucleation’ grabs you by the throat from the very opening riff and doesn’t let go for its three minutes or so duration. You want reference points? Think Aborted, Nile and maybe even a smidgeon of The Red Chord. A varied palette I’m sure you’ll agree but it’s testament to A Trust Unclean’s ability that they’ve managed to take several sub-styles within the genre and meld them together seamlessly.

The biggest groove element of the EP comes in the shape of ‘Perverse Agenda’. It ducks and weaves like a prize fighter before dropping into a filthy breakdown of epic proportions. The accompanying video is the closest thing to the Pantera home videos you’re every likely to see as well – great fun and an antidote to some of the over stylised clips that festoon YouTube in this day and age

You want proof that there’s still plenty of life in British tech-death, then you need look no further. A Trust Unclean are proof enough that there’s still plenty of ‘broodal’ to drag out of death metal’s fetid corpse.

4/5

‘Reality Relinquished’ EP by A Trust Unclean is out now.

A Trust Unclean links: Facebook|Twitter|Bandcamp

Words by Rob Fearnley.