Review by chrisc7249 on May 3, 2022.

Every band has their heroes. All music comes from somewhere, bit by bit as it gradually evolves to where it is now. Coexistence keeps no secret about who their main influence is, and it sticks out in their music like a sore thumb. Make no mistake, Coexistence's debut album Collateral Dimension sounds a lot like Beyond Creation. And, making music that heavily emulates another band could be looked at in a negative light by some. The goal is to attempt to stay true to your influences while trying to carve out your own path. Has Coexistence succeeded at this goal?

Well, let's start with the obvious. In case it wasn't obvious from the name being taken after a Beyond Creation song, almost every song sounds like a deep cut from one of Beyond Creation's first two albums. It's a good mix of sounds, straddling somewhere between Augury and Decrepit Birth, complete with a fretless bass, pummeling drumming and pure death metal vocals with good range. The songs are long winded and feature soft jazz "elevator music" interludes to break up the complex and impressive technical death metal. The death metal parts are heavy and intense, filled with crazy solos and crushing riffs from the two axe masters. The interludes are a nice touch, and I'm happy they incorporated them into the songs instead of making them separate tracks. I prefer when bands do that instead of making it its own track.

It's pretty incredible how many guys can wield a 6 string fretless bass and make it sound good. Add this guy to the mix, who, at first I wasn't keen on, but his more subtle style of play grew on me. He's nowhere near as flashy as guys from bands like Equipoise, First Fragment, Spectrum Of Delusion or Aepoch, but adds just enough flavor to the mix to elevate the music. The guitar players are masters once again, with one of them handling vocal duties - the vocals are pretty basic but I do enjoy that there's at least both lows and highs instead of just one or the other. The drumming is of course insane, and his ability to switch between relentless blast beats and jazz fills is impressive.

Unfortunately for Coexistence, their biggest downfall is that the songs do tend to blur quite a bit. Even when the songs are playing it's hard to decipher which one is which to these ears. I certainly have my favorites, such as the tracks 'Detach From The Abyss' and 'Revert', and other tracks are really good, but they lack sticking power. They're good while they're on, forgettable when they're not. It's a rookie thing, I've noticed, as bands on their first album usually haven't planted their foot down quite yet and are still treading and have some missteps along the way. Coexistence falls trap to it, and none of it is their fault; it's hard to write music, and it's even harder to write good, memorable music. They do succeed for the most part, however.

I wouldn't say this band sounds too much like Beyond Creation, although it's undeniable that they're influenced by them. They definitely don't sound like direct copies, as other influences are lurking in their sound. The musicianship is tight, the songs, although repetitive and forgettable at times, are still surprisingly mature for a debut. The production is really good, and overall, it's a solid debut. Definitely a band to watch out for in the future. They'll most certainly improve from here, and it's exciting to think of where this band will be on their 2nd or 3rd album. Good shit.

FFO: Beyond Creation, Aepoch, Augury

Favorite song: 'Detach From The Abyss'

Rating: 7 out of 10

Review by chrisc7249 on May 3, 2022.

Every band has their heroes. All music comes from somewhere, bit by bit as it gradually evolves to where it is now. Coexistence keeps no secret about who their main influence is, and it sticks out in their music like a sore thumb. Make no mistake, Coexistence's debut album Collateral Dimension sounds a lot like Beyond Creation. And, making music that heavily emulates another band could be looked at in a negative light by some. The goal is to attempt to stay true to your influences while trying to carve out your own path. Has Coexistence succeeded at this goal?

Well, let's start with the obvious. In case it wasn't obvious from the name being taken after a Beyond Creation song, almost every song sounds like a deep cut from one of Beyond Creation's first two albums. It's a good mix of sounds, straddling somewhere between Augury and Decrepit Birth, complete with a fretless bass, pummeling drumming and pure death metal vocals with good range. The songs are long winded and feature soft jazz "elevator music" interludes to break up the complex and impressive technical death metal. The death metal parts are heavy and intense, filled with crazy solos and crushing riffs from the two axe masters. The interludes are a nice touch, and I'm happy they incorporated them into the songs instead of making them separate tracks. I prefer when bands do that instead of making it its own track.

It's pretty incredible how many guys can wield a 6 string fretless bass and make it sound good. Add this guy to the mix, who, at first I wasn't keen on, but his more subtle style of play grew on me. He's nowhere near as flashy as guys from bands like Equipoise, First Fragment, Spectrum Of Delusion or Aepoch, but adds just enough flavor to the mix to elevate the music. The guitar players are masters once again, with one of them handling vocal duties - the vocals are pretty basic but I do enjoy that there's at least both lows and highs instead of just one or the other. The drumming is of course insane, and his ability to switch between relentless blast beats and jazz fills is impressive.

Unfortunately for Coexistence, their biggest downfall is that the songs do tend to blur quite a bit. Even when the songs are playing it's hard to decipher which one is which to these ears. I certainly have my favorites, such as the tracks 'Detach From The Abyss' and 'Revert', and other tracks are really good, but they lack sticking power. They're good while they're on, forgettable when they're not. It's a rookie thing, I've noticed, as bands on their first album usually haven't planted their foot down quite yet and are still treading and have some missteps along the way. Coexistence falls trap to it, and none of it is their fault; it's hard to write music, and it's even harder to write good, memorable music. They do succeed for the most part, however.

I wouldn't say this band sounds too much like Beyond Creation, although it's undeniable that they're influenced by them. They definitely don't sound like direct copies, as other influences are lurking in their sound. The musicianship is tight, the songs, although repetitive and forgettable at times, are still surprisingly mature for a debut. The production is really good, and overall, it's a solid debut. Definitely a band to watch out for in the future. They'll most certainly improve from here, and it's exciting to think of where this band will be on their 2nd or 3rd album. Good shit.

FFO: Beyond Creation, Aepoch, Augury

Favorite song: 'Detach From The Abyss'

Rating: 7 out of 10