Album Review: Mutagenic Host - The Diseased Machine
Reviewed by Sam Jones
It’s good to return to metal releases and here, with Mutagenic Host’s first full length record, we have what is possibly my first piece for 2025. I’ve known of this band for a little while now, having seen them once previously in London supporting a small show. Formed not that long ago from London, United Kingdom, the band, as of 2023, have hurled out already a Demo and a number of Singles and with a slew of live performances scattered across their local region. It’s great to see these guys are now prepping to release their first full length work, titled The Diseased Machine, via independent means as per the Digital release however, concerning the physical copies, the band will be in partnership with Dry Cough Records whom Mutagenic Host have recently been signed to. This album was a nice surprise to see on the horizon and thus I dove head first into this release, excited for whatever Mutagenic Host, a young band, have cooked up for us. Releasing January 3rd, this is one perfect way to kick off the New Year.
I think one aspect that can easily creep up on us are the drums. Early on in the record, before the wilder forces of The Diseased Machine become apparent, the drums are petty conventional and nicely later the record alongside the bass. But as tracks advance and the band’s songwriting is continuously fleshed out, so too are the drums given additional spotlight to showcase their quality. It’s nice to acknowledge the band aren’t always going to town on blast beats for it thereby gives the record plenty of room to breathe and ensures the audience isn’t going to feel constantly pummelled at every turn. The varying techniques utilised by the drums is in fact surprising for they may switch from typical patterns to more intricate fills to blast beats entwined with more methodically played sequences. It’s difficult to identify two tracks across the record that use the exact same drum fill or pattern again which gives each ensuing track a fresh vigour each time a new song starts up, which is all the more vital for a band’s first album (especially when this will be most people’s first exposure to Mutagenic Host).
When you first hear these guys play it becomes abundantly clear Mutagenic Host are at home with the old school style; their riffs are precise and methodically placed within their songwriting to allow for an easy and accessible experience, a coarse and abrasive soundscape this is not. However, whilst the band harbour a love for old school approaches to death metal, it’s evident they’re not using nostalgia as a crutch for their riffs and tempo are often changing to keep us enthralled and on the guessing as per what they’ll do next. It imagines to embody retro records but you can tell early on the band are injecting their own identity in droves herein. The band’s songwriting isn’t anything overtly progressive but it’s worth noting how their songwriting doesn’t prefer to just give us a single course of song progression and expect us to take it; a single track can change itself up three or four times if it so wishes, with varying degrees of tempo and tone. Some sequences can be more pummelling whereas others are much more rapid and possess a fiercer, piercing aesthetic.
One aspect I think aids Mutagenic Host is their decision to give their riffs, and extending guitar work on the whole, a clarity that makes for an easy bridge from newcomer to Mutagenic Host’s soundscape. One will not struggle whatsoever to make out what is occurring at any point throughout the record as drums, bass and even the growling vocals have been mixed, and presented, to enable an immersive experience whereby the audience know where they’re being led down (even as the songwriting likes to mix things up as track development proceeds). Yet, upon listening, it’s obvious their tone is very far from clean, harnessing a scraping and tough texture that riffs and licks fly off from. The guitar work is clearly the crux of The Diseased Machine but Mutagenic Host aren’t going to let their riffs strike with dilapidated impact; their aesthetic leans towards old school sensibilities but you feel the mass behind every chord strummed. There’s just enough dirt within the record’s mix to give the band the believability that this opus of theirs truly sounds and feels dangerous, yet not so much that it starts conflicting with the band’s desire for an efficiently conveyed work.
For a band that’s only just releasing their first full length album, the vocals absolutely jump off the record and target your throat without mercy. Across the record as a whole, the band’s whole performance is impressive for there’s no single element within that’s lacking; it all blends together seamlessly to craft a record that doesn’t wish to hold back, where all members are giving it their all. It’s why their vocal presence is so exemplary; cross a record of this passionate calibre, the vocals still stick out as a fundamentally integral part of the Mutagenic Host experience and reducing the intensity such a performance imbues their sound with would dramatically lessen the fervent, unrelenting performance herein. These vocals are growling with a bellowing resonance as they appear to nearly leap the record off the floor. Throughout each track the vocals convey a savagery that’s hardly contained, for though a growling performance is almost a given in death metal there’s a barely restrained animality within his delivery, and it’s got enough of a striating timbre behind it that you naturally believe it’s ferocity on record.
In conclusion, The Diseased Machine could not be a better start for Mutagenic Host as they seek to get their name and work out there, especially during the early stages of the new year that sets up many with hype for releases to come. I think those looking to scratch their death metal itch will be thoroughly impressed and satisfied with Mutagenic Host’s performance here as they deliver a hulking, crunching work that respects their time but also provides a clear picture of what people will hear. It’s nice to hear British extreme metal assume such a strong and prominent position in the new year and The Diseased Machine lives up to that hype and then some more. It’s an extremely rewarding listen, especially with the mid-album instrumental and closing minutes of ambience that give the record a more fulfilling, realised aspect. By the record’s end it does feel like the climax of the journey as laid out by the band and thus, when album two comes out, you know you’ll be more than prepped for it. A striking start for 2025 for sure.
