There's a certain sense of nobility to Kylesa as they often embody the kind of "fuck you, we'll do what we want" mentality that has been lacking in metal as of late. Where bands have become increasingly plagued by commercial sensibility and constrictive genre definitions; Kylesa instead swerve and veer off course like a drunk driver, crashing into multiple styles to form a cathartic, albeit gruesome, blood splatter collage of punk, doom, sludge and hardcore on their hood.

Loud, abrasive and sludgy, there are no razor-sharp breakdowns here. Instead the band employ a primal approach - one that is especially encapsulated in the vocals. Comparisons to early Black Flag are easily made as both male and female vocals are truly shouted with more emphasis put on feeling than pitch or tune. Backing up this unrestrained approach is a swampy Mastodon reminiscent mixture of doom, metal and traditional hardcore, complete with lingering reoccurrences of spaced out psychedelic drone.

Much like a butcher in the backroom, Kylesa at work is not the most pleasant thing to experience. Their music is grating and uninhibited, seething with intensity and a confrontational attitude. The bouts of lethargic sonic experimentation do offer brief reprieve, but the listeners patience will surely be tested. With their strengths and weaknesses continually exposed, Kylesa are often a grueling listen. Discordant and unabashed with little in the way of a rewarding experience as far as song progression goes, their purging nature is about their only distinctly memorable quality. But with that being such an intangible ability these days, this middle course is one that should surely be traversed at least once.