Review of Destroying The Devoid - "Paramnesia"

HERE I GO AGAIN ON MY OWN

By: Geoff Teach

Every so often, you have an overpowering vision or idea, and you know that the only way that it will get done exactly right is to do it on your own. Although it can seem rather daunting, you know that in the end, if you stay the course and buckle down, your concept will come to a glorious fruition.

Such is recently the case for Craig Peters, former member of Arkaik, current member of Deeds of Flesh, and now founding and only member of Destroying The Devoid, his one-man project that has just released its debut album, Paramnesia, on Unique Leader Records. Peters wrote all of the music, recorded all of the instruments, and in the ultimate display of “If you want it done right, you have to do it yourself” autonomy, he also self-produced and engineered the entire album as well.

And what of the quality of the music and production that has resulted from Peters’s efforts? I am being fully honest when I say that Paramnesia is some of the finest, most intricately concocted death metal that I have ever heard. Sophisticated, and imaginative, Destroying The Devoid have released an album that captivates the listener from start to finish with its stunning songcraft and fantastic musical formulations.

From the get-go, Paramnesia yanks you in with the slick piano and keyboard intro of “Chasm of Existence”, and right away you know that this album is going to be different from your usual tech-death ripper. Noticeably more melodic and dynamic than most of their Unique Leader label-mates, Destroying The Devoid's Paramnesia is laden with peaks and valleys, acoustic interludes and bridges, samples, and electronic overlays throughout its seven toothsome tracks.

Other standout songs from Destroying The Devoid’s Paramnesia include, well, all of them! Seriously, this whole album is fucking incredible, however, if I must choose a few favorites for posterity, I’ll say that “Carnivale Nocturno”, the title track “Paramnesia”, and the entire three-track series of “Beyond The Veil” to close out the album are definitely the choicest, most hypnotic cuts; but truly I tell you, Paramnesia is all killer and no filler, and this album is definitely going to rank as one of my finest of the year. So get out there and order yourself a copy of Destroying The Devoid’s Paramnesia. You will not regret it in the least.