Italian outfit DISCORDANCE has released two albums: their debut in 2017 and their sophomore in 2021. Fast forward five years for their new EP “Viscere”, issued by the excellent French label Great Dane Records. This version includes their first ever recording, the 2009 “Unborn Disease” EP. This is a pretty interesting detail, since it shows how the band has evolved through their 19 year old career. Both EPs include drummer Francesco Benvenuti and guitarist Alessio Giberti as original members. With the inclusion of vocalist Francesco Sita and bassist Zeno Zucchelli, the band plays what I would describe as experimental Death Metal. The intensity of Grindcore outbursts matches perfectly the odd and interesting voicings of the guitar riffs, the eerie melodies and the compelling details in the rhythm section, which makes “Viscere” a really engaging listening experience. After the third spin I started noticing constant nuances popping up in the music. I also noticed that the vocals have a certain theatricality, given the fact that they adjust perfectly to the atmosphere of each song, combining deep growls, mid grunts and some high pitched screams. The overall atmosphere feels odd, which kept me fine tuning my ear to try and discover what was happening in each song. Production wise, this recording fits the band’s style perfectly. I mean, these guys are excellent musicians and their music craves dynamics. Thankfully, the engineer understood that and gave this mix a lot of character, giving enough space to each instrument to shine without compromising the unity and cohesion of the music. Same goes for the mastering, which is loud but not brickwalled or saturated. Dare I say there is some mid ’90s SADIST (ITA) and even some early CALVARY (ITA) in their sound, but maybe that’s just me, since those are two of my all time Italian favourites. I am already looking forward for their next output, since this one left me wondering what else DISCORDANCE can come up with if they keep exploring this path they have forged themselves. Although this review is focused on “Viscere”, their debut EP “Unborn Disease” is an excellent example of old school Death / Grind: lots of tremolo / palm muted fast riffs, excellent leads, pounding bass and an ultra tight rhythm section. Here vocalist Andrea Malfatto (R.I.P.) displays some amazingly aggressive growls and excellent phrasing. He’s got a little John Tardy thing going on across these five songs. Sure it sounds like a different band, but the quality is the same. A very welcomed addition to this release. Show some support to the band here www.facebook.com/discordanceband and get their EP from their label here www.facebook.com/greatdanerecords