Himsa "Summon in Thunder" (Century Media)
By Taylor Green
Friday. Oct 12, 12:25 PM
As much regression as progression.

Ominous whispers crawl through the speakers, echoing that ubiquitous moment in horror movies as the monster is just about to strike its prey. These whispers, an awkward and eerie refrain, soon disintegrate at the tired, coarse hands of breakneck drums, a tumultuous riff, and the maniacal screams of vocalist John Pettibone. This is the first minute of "Reinventing the Noose." And this is Himsa, quite literally the antithesis of peace (the sanskrit word “ahimsa”), the embodiment of chaos, fury, and violence.

On their fourth offering, Summon in Thunder, Himsa have evolved into a matured and malevolent five-piece, meshing everything wonderful from their first two albums, namely Courting Tragedy and Disaster, with everything explosive from their last masterpiece, Hail Horror. Along with the experience and knowledge of three albums under their belt, this Himsa lineup sees songwriters Sammi Curr (Courting Tragedy and Disaster) and Kirby Johnson (Hail Horror) join forces the likes of which have never been seen in the metalcore world. The results play clear in the final product, an almost bridging between where the band stood before their breakthrough album Hail Horror and after. However, in achieving such a sound, there ends up being as much regression as progression.

Himsa may claim to be many things, namely a fusion of traditional and new school metal. And while most of these claims ring true in the overall product, they are seldom universal. The only universal truth of Summon in Thunder is that Himsa remain very much a metalcore band. Therefore, like many of their peers, there is a certain amount of redundancy found within the album. Like any overexposed metal genre, metalcore passed its peak long before genres began swooping up any thing "core." Himsa then walk the line between genre heavyweights such as Unearth and Killswitch Engage – bands who continue to push the boundaries and explore the genre's possibilities – and genre wannabes such as Atreyu and Bleeding Through: bands who have played the same tired and boring riffs and structures since their first demo. At its best, Summon in Thunder is a shining piece of musical excellence with its hands in the jars of various influences, yet holding enough originality to sound like none of them outright. These moments tend to exist when most needed on the album, mainly the opening "Reinventing the Noose," the seven-minute "Skinwalkers," and the swirling tornado of "Unleash Carnage" toward the album's end. But at its worst, Summon in Thunder sounds like From Autumn To Ashes with a spine: not heavy enough and not melodic enough to win over either side of the fence. Tracks like "Big Timber" and "Curseworship" ring as generic metalcore snoozefests, filled with that same old song structure and those high pitched, twangy chord progressions that exist in every metalcore album ever made.

Once again, Himsa have proven that, while they may be ahead of the pack, they still rely too much on that pack for personal growth. Himsa try to be too much at once, and the overall album suffers because of it. Summon in Thunder regresses to where the band stood before Hail Horror, as a metalcore band set to explode and push the genre in a new direction. But even if Hail Horror teased that prophecy as reality, Summon in Thunder has yet to put the wheels in motion. If Himsa can write full albums in the vein of "Reinventing the Noose," "Haunter," "Skinwalkers," and "Ruin Them," then they may finally live up to the lofty expectations placed upon them years ago. Until then, Himsa remain a band on the brink.
www.himsa.org
www.centurymedia.com

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Taylor Green

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