Residing somewhere between the spastic savagery of Converge and the out-and-out brutality of Ion Dissonance, Glass Casket offer a brand of lethal metal that feeds off of a simmering vat of all that is extreme. Hailing from North Carolina, a state that is rapidly becoming a breeding ground for heavy music, these five men formerly known as Gadrel are looking to toss their hat into the fray with "We Are Gathered Here Today..."; a debut that expertly captures the frenetic seizures this quintet is so adept at inducing.

Highly proficient in break-neck technical speed, yet also capable of slowing things down to a murky doom-laden crawl, Glass Casket execute near flawless extreme music with roots deeply entrenched in melodic death metal. While they at times seemingly twist and turn through every style of metal imaginable, the group's steadfast determination and skilled precision at melding such varied talents into one cohesive unit is impressive; and their ability to control the reins of this charging machine that seems ever so close to falling apart is a fact that should not be ignored. The group bound from one metallic avenue to another like a mountain goat leaping from peak to peak, showing little hesitation at attempting such potentially disastrous stunts, and yet their blind zeal at pushing their music that much further pays off in spades. The repetitive scale-shredding of guitarists Blake Tuten and Dustie Waring lead the way, drifting from pure riff-heavy madness to mathematical precision with ease, and the rest of the group follow suit.

"Pencil Lead Syringe" ushers the listener to their seat amongst the lunatics trapped in this asylum of sound, bending grindcore and stretching melodic metal with the sickening grace of a freakshow contortionist. Adam Cody's feverish delivery on the mic echoes the rabid intensity of his fellow band members, and when shared by bassist Sid Menon, they freely slip from raw, agonized screams to throatier death inspired growls, though their vocals are often treated as back-up to the metallic feats being performed. Cody and Menon settle into their respective roles quite comfortably and rarely stray from the scream/growl balance, yet this only intensifies the moments where the band choose to test their vocal melodies. Granted these melodic excursions are primarily limited to "In Between The Sheets", yet the contrasting melody found within is one of the album's greatest surprises. Sarcastic and eerily humorous, the band mock such a cliche inclusion openly and though the spotlighted solo and accompanying harmonies are exquisite, this is a brief escape and soon the group are back to pummeling eardrums. The epic "A Gray A.M. You Will Never See" closes the record with an emotional breakdown, as the quintet vent all their anger and sorrow over the loss of a loved one, and it is here that drummer Blake Richardson proves his worth with some of the album's best percussion.

Though this sort of frenzied noise explosion has become quite commonplace in today's extreme metal world, few seem as comfortable in their niche as Glass Casket do. Their confidence can easily be detected throughout the music on display here. As a whole, "We Are Gathered Here Today..." documents the ravenous hunger of a young band just beginning to work their contagion into the metal waters; the only question is whether or not their virus can have any effect on an audience which is rapidly becoming immune to such chaos. Such an impact remains to be seen, but Glass Casket appear to have the necessary desire to spread such an infection world-wide; welcoming those stricken with their metallic malady to a never-ending funeral procession of technical extremes in the process.