Adapt Swarm Planet - Flesh Configuration (Review)

The promo itself to this new record included phrases like “filthy brand of technical death metal with a level of brutality….”. Powerful words like this just commends me to take up the record and listen to it. This time it was Flesh Configuration, with their latest offering “Adapt Swarm Planet”. This six track EP promises no less than than a mixture of technicality and brutality while having a gnarly dirty quality in-built, catered especially towards the fans of Disgorge and Cattle Decapitation. 

The record’s nuanced and twisty nature is expressed from the beginning itself. Tracks like “Revitalizes Impurification” and “A Legacy of Violence” showcase vile and gut wrenching riffs, along with the eerie lead guitar layerings and the drums blasting throughout. While a few moments of slammy chunky riffs are definitely catchy, a major portion of structure in “A Legacy of Violence” feels overly repetitive due to excessive use of the generic tropes of brutal death metal. My preference for “Adapt Swarm Planet” was initially confusing, because no-doubt it sounds like jumbled shit from a surface level standpoint. “Infinite Despair” showcases moments of groove in its first-half followed by slamming brutality in the later half. “Cesspool Vortex Enigma” contains chunky riffs in an absolutely filthy and unsettling way. Unpredictable to its core, the rhythm takes sharp turns with each passage and reminds of Disgorge.

The last two tracks of the album have to be my most favorite. Around this time, you have a predicament about the band’s actual sound and your brain starts processing the extremities you hear. “Hour of the Sleeper’s Rebirth” and “Necrotic Spire” are fast paced tracks, mixed in with the extreme drumming. Along with the tightness in the rhythm sections,a certain bouncy and chunky quality exists that adds flavor to the tracks. I can’t stop myself but think of it as the proto-Defeated Sanity sound!

A rawness exists within the production of “Adapt Swarm Planet” which is honestly not my cup of tea, but then the drum kit sounds pleasant to my ears. A better touch to the overall old-school sound might result in a better quality. The guitar work is honestly commendable - from possessing technicalities to having slamming moments, this record provides you everything. The vocals, mostly lows, are loud in the mix and honestly does the job as needed. In a niche genre which has its fair share of love and hate, it is important to understand that Flesh Configuration is not for everyone. It did take several listens for me to fully grasp what’s going on, and from that point it was an enjoyable ride. “Adapt Swarm Planet” isn’t a bad sounding record by any means, though asking for a bit better production isn’t any harm right?

Rating: 3.0/5.0

Website: https://www.facebook.com/Fleshconfiguration

Genre: Brutal Death Metal

Worldwide Release: May 14th, 2022.

Label: Vargheist Records / Cave Dweller Productions