Hailing from Glasgow and with a lot of ties to the local metal community (including Ivory Blacks where there’s an awesome festival on December 10th), Gunpoint X have been around for a couple of years. Covid kicked them in the nuts in of output, but their delayed debut album is out right now.
A lot of thought and effort has gone into the ten tracks here, with influences ranging from Fear Factory to Machine Head. As well as the traditional metal sound, there are some distorted vocals and backing tracks which add a bit of depth. It all works pretty well. The use of little intros such as on “Guns Guns Guns” gives a little extra professional touch.
It’s a pretty full-on affair, with a rampant rhythm section blasting you back into your seat. Vocals are generally angry and spat out in a rap-like style, taking no shit from anyone. This isn’t the kind of music for guitar solos, but there are some musical breaks, often accompanied by backing tapes / samples, where the strings lead the sonic charge.
Like good groove metal, there isn’t a song on Perfection of Human Error that tries to be too clever. They’re all stupidly easy to get into and bang your head to. The harsh lyrics are also decipherable so those of you who want to sing along won’t have any problems doing so. That’s not to say that they’re “samey” or anything. There’s plenty of variety amongst the carnage.
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For instance I’d probably class “Tombstone Rites” as a highlight and it’s one of two particularly lengthy tracks at almost six and a half minutes (only one song is longer) where the rest of the songs mainly float around the four minute mark. “Tombstone Rites” makes the most of its extra length and never feels laboured, like the band are using it to stretch their legs a little.
“Shockwave Theory / Human Revolution” is the other lengthy one and the most “different” on the album, set apart with its interesting intro and experimental sounds. Again, Gunpoint X not being afraid to play around and see what comes out of the mixer.
If there’s a downside, it’s that I found the sound a bit too trebly. The bass notes absolutely thump, but the cymbals are a bit splashy. However, this is as much personal taste as anything else. And you can check the whole beast out for yourself on Bandcamp anyway. And then buy it. Or pick up a CD from some of the independent shops in Glasgow, or BigCartel!
This is a great collection of songs and a debut release that Gunpoint X should be proud of. Worth the wait!
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[…] if not all of the songs they played were culled from their debut EP Perfection of Human Error which I reviewed back in 2022. After the show I was talking to vocalist Rob about how much I’d enjoyed their set, and how […]