A short intro, the crack of a door, WHAM!, Awakening blasts in your face with exciting polyrhythmic madness that could be pulled straight out of a random Meshuggah-album, only that I find this far more accessible and entertaining. Where Monument Bineothan struggled to find the right path, Benea Reach seems to have set their minds straight, playing a mix of Meshuggah, SikTh, Extol, Lengsel and even softer stuff like Refused. Despite the numerous categories you could place this band in, they add their own twist to this and it‘s hard to place them anywhere really. The flexible Illka Volume, varies from high pitched screams, death-like growls, hardcore raspy shouts, and the occasional soft clean parts. Crushingly heavy as it is, they manage to sneak in some nice melancholic melody-lines that makes everything more spicy and tasteful. And songs like Reason might be a gateway in for people who normally can’t handle this sort of music. Where Monument Bineothan struggled with variation and had few highlights, almost every song on Alleviat sticks out in one way or another. The guys can handle tempo, shape-shifting, and not the least, song-writing with brilliance as I discover new, nifty details with every spin.

There are surprisingly few flaws here, even the core-elements that can’t really be hidden anywhere, are made interesting, thrilling, and to some extent, compelling coupled with the enthralling melodies. Including elements such as the female vocals on both Reason and Illume will send buckets of ice down your spine, with mind-boggling beauty mixed with bone-shattering riffs and drumming. Monument Bineothan came of as unfinished, uninspired and a little forced, Alleviat sounds deliberate to the very core, with a clear path set out from the very beginning of Awakening to the chaotic ending of the finishing death-strike that is Dominion. Drenched in quality, the machinery stomps on with mathcore that is actually catchy and compelling, and well, out of this world. Mixing up hardcore, death metal, and progressive elements in a bowl of colourful and tasty candy with a lot of variation and unpredictability. I’m even willing to go as far as to say that Benea Reach outsmarted most competitors within this genre back in 2008.

With disturbing heavyness and intelligent melodic genius, Benea Reach have created a monster of another world. A definite milestone in the Norwegian Hardcore/Metal scene, and worlds apart from their debut Monument Bineothan that actually won them a Norwegian Grammy. Apocalyptic, pitch black, moody and gloomy atmosphere puts on a stranglehold that’ll weaken the strongest of souls. With their strength lying solely in the song-writing and their own sound, the future lies clear for Benea Reach. Fans that are into the progressive/hardcore/experimental/metalcore scene, should eat this up like candy, and no-one will blame them. Highly recommended.