Album Review: Distant – Heritage (Century Media Records)

Deathcore heavyweights Distant mark their Century Media debut with their much-anticipated brand-new album, Heritage. Released on February 10th, 2023, the album continues the thematic, sci-fi leaning lyrical cycle which the band already transposed from aural intensity to the published page with vocalist Alan Grnja’s and bassist Elmer Maurits first novel, The Rise of Tyrannotophia.

One of the brightest stars in the modern deathcore scene, Distant have been knocking it out of the park over the past few releases. Combining detailed and dystopian sci-fi stories with raging and pulverising deathcore heaviness. Something they continue with great aplomb on this new record.

Featuring twelve examples of unbridled aggression, exciting energy, and chaotic intensity. Heritage is the moment Distant go from a band that a lot of people are talking about, to a band that everyone is talking about.

A dark and horror-infused intro called Acid Rain sets the scene, as Distant transition into the blistering ferocity of Paradigm Shift. The intensity that this band showcases on this track is startling and it is undeniably one of the heaviest things the band has ever put out. It’s one hell of a start to an album.

Collect your teeth and shake off the brain fog, Distant are only getting started. Turning the heat up with the crunching Born of Blood. A track that descends into guttural carnage with barely a breath taken. Followed then by The Grief Manifest and Exofilth; two meaty, mean, and thrilling examples of Distant’s deathcore layers.

How’s this for something special though? Argent Justice is a 7+ minute deathcore epic that features the who’s who of the international deathcore scene on vocals and is a celebration of the scene. It’s an absurd undertaking and really shouldn’t work as well as it does. Especially when you see the number of names featured in this one track:

Eddie Hermida (Suicide Silence), Frankie Palmeri (Emmure), Andreas Bjulver (Cabal), Aaron Matts (ten56), Marc Zelli (Paleface), Alan Grnja (Distant,) Devin Duarte (Worm Shepherd), Dan Tucker (Crown Magnetar), Mike Greenwood (Angelmaker), Casey Tyson-Pearce (Angelmaker), Colton Bennet (Angelmaker), Johnny Ciardullo (Carcosa), Andrew Baena (Carcosa), Kyle Medina (Bodysnatcher), Tomáš Klár (Abbie Falls), Marcus Jasak (Acranius), Kevin Petersen (Acranius), and Vladimir Golic (Distant).

Impressive and thankfully, not particularly jarring as many of these vocalists share similar vocal styles.

It’s back to ‘simpler’ activities for Distant with The Gnostic Uprising, where the guitar squeals will send a shiver down the spine. Then A Sentence To Suffer showcases crunching instrumental and roaring massacre. Before Human Scum’s absurd level of brutality and the blood-curdling speed of the title track leaves the body wracked with pain. There’s simply no let-up here, even when you get interesting levels of sci-fi atmosphere layered throughout.

It does mean there’s no boredom setting in as the album reaches its end. It’s been a killer ride and now it’s all about sticking the landing so this can be assuredly called Distant’s best work to date. Which these deathcore malcontents do with such ease, it’s almost funny. Wrapping things up in unsurprisingly savage, but such bloody satisfying style, with Orphan of Blight and Plaguebreeder.

This is Distant reaching an apex they have been clawing their way to for years now. They are now standing atop the deathcore mountain and it’s Heritage’s brilliance that got them there.

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