Archspire have undoubtedly set the benchmark when it comes to modern technical death metal. And quite a lofty benchmark it is. From the promising breakthroughs of The Lucid Collective (2014) and Relentless Mutation (2017), to the genre's arguable perfection on Bleed the Future (2021), the Canadian cacophonists have continually pushed the technical and compositional limits of extreme music for over a decade at this point. As Too Fast to Die's title suggests, the band show no sign or intention of slowing down anytime soon. You have to wonder just how long they can keep this up for, especially given the already unexpected leap in quality between the last two already-classic records, not to mention the recent restructuring their line-up has undergone—this being the first Archspire album since the departure of founding drummer Spencer Prewett, and the much publicised search for his replacement, which resulted in the band eventually settling on former Inferi sticksman Spencer Moore.
Many concerned fans will be relieved to learn that Too Fast to Die is everything you'd expect from an Archspire album. On the other hand, Too Fast to Die is also everything you'd expect from an Archspire album, and little—if anything—more. While still quite good overall, this also makes it the first of their albums not to outdo its predecessor, which it largely does (or rather doesn't) do by sticking far too closely to their established formula. Concerns of diminishing returns abounded as soon as lead single "Carrion Ladder" dropped. The burst-fire vocal at the start of "Calamus Will Animate" is one of the most distinctive and innovative moments in Archspire's history, and has quickly become the band's calling card. It's something you only get to do once though, and hearing it repeated so blatantly here only cheapens its impact, while also adding to the unshakable feeling that—despite their continued technical wizardry—the band might also be starting to run out of ideas.
Ironically, its the moments when Archspire slow down that Too Fast to Die is most effective. The album starts out promisingly enough with "Liminal Cypher", which builds up from an inviting, acoustic opening to a delicious, almost deathcore-like groove that underpins the chaotic assault that continues atop its compelling, low end assault. The effect is reminiscent of what recent tour-mates and collaborators Aborted managed to achieve on their last record, making for one of the record's more distinctive moments. It's an outstanding and extremely promising opener. From there though, things start sounding a lot more like TerrorVision (2018) or ManiaCult (2021) (remember that one?), than those albums' more memorable and accomplished bookends. Tracks like "Red Goliath", "Anomalous Descent" and "The Vessel" are all fine, but also extremely forgettable tracks, whose sameness also blends together somewhat, so that Too Fast to Die ends up suffering from a severely saggy middle section, despite—and largely because of—its persistent pace.
Second single, "Limb of Leviticus" is the album's only other really standout moment. Here, Archspire actually manage to take their collective foot off the accelerator for a second and bring back some of the sorely missed melody that made Bleed the Future so much interesting and memorable. The song starts off blistering enough, but across its almost-six-minute runtime, it—get this—actually manages to add in a lot of different elements and dynamics, including an intelligible and instantly catchy (though still scattershot) chorus, eventually building to a melodic climax that recalls the album's acoustic opening, and really should have been its closer. Remaining duo "Deadbolt the Backward" and "Too Fast to Die" are both fine, and even exceed many of the album's earlier offerings. By the time the closing title-track erupts then peters out in another indistinctive flurry, much of its original interest has been left long behind.*
At thirty-nine unrelenting minutes, Too Fast to Die is somehow both an exhausting and largely uneventful listen. The sheer physical musicianship on display here is undeniably impressive. The overt focus on speed rather than songwriting, however, also means it isn't all that interesting to listen to—like the most skilled driver and technically advanced F1 car forced to cut laps of a NASCAR circuit all on its own.** Newcomers to the band will no doubt continue to be blown away by the speed and technicality of this album's compositions. Those already familiar will have a hard time shaking the feeling that they haven't already heard it all before.
...Also, why isn't it called Be Quick or Be Dead? Which is after all, an actual (heavy metal) saying. Or, better yet, do it Megadeth style: Be Quick ...or Be Dead! There you go guys; you can have that one for free.