Dissonant death metal is a relatively recent focus for my ever-so-musically acquisitive brain; only this past week did I listen to disso-death masterpieces like Ulcerate's Cutting the Throat of God (2024) with my earbuds at 95% volume sprawled out across my bed with my eyes shut. I didn't necessarily fall asleep, as how could I? The barrage of discordance supplied over fifty-six minutes by the band would've been much worse for my dreams than a dose of melatonin. There's something about that dissonant death metal, though. Imperial Triumphant's Goldstar (2025) instantly headed my personal charts late last year, and I can only blame those masked New Yorkers for this cacophonous infatuation. I adore their, and any band's, balance of atmosphere and technicality. So, when I saw that the blog had a dissodeath promo up for grabs, I demanded it be sent my way without hesitation.
Dysgnostic is the culprit. Established two hours near the city where the LEGO brick was conceived, this four-piece set has been constructing a nuanced, hypnotic sound, building on the sonic themes of their 2022 debut release, Scar Echoes. Their new record, End Whispers, is better influenced by brutal death metal, with aggressiveness supplied in the forefront, pushing the dissonant elements into the accompaniment. This unique technique triggers a ferocious reaction of extreme heaviness cloaked in ambiguity, making it the most in-your-face disso-death I've listened to date. I've always had notions that this style of metal is best done away: not directly piped in your ears. I'd say the record is a nice blend of both brutality and off-kilterness, but be aware that there's a greater abundance of loud and typical death metal tendencies than expected.
Vocalist Thomas Fischer dives subterraneanly to reach his gutturals, and when paired with the relentless blastbeating à la Richardt Olsen, they remind me of ye olde classics. Olsen's snare tone–which you'll hear 14,000 hits-per-song of–takes me back to the nostalgic times of smacking random sticks on plastic buckets. Hear them unleashed best at ~2:30 in "The Black Sun" or the entirety of "The Last Refrain". Yeah, it gets really annoying after forty-one minutes, but usually I'm distracted by the pure disorientation Dysgnostic conjures within the album. The guitar tones are skronky to the nth degree, perpetually competing to overpower each other. The fight takes the duration of the project, and as far as I know, it'll always remain incessant. There are cleaner moments, mainly acoustic guitar openings, but the real focus is on the band's technicality and persistence.
End Whispers is yet another record to fuel my campaign for dissonance. If it had weight, this album would be immovable, therefore forever seated on the line between murderous and refined metal. If this interests you, you can soon–in typical Transcending Obscurity fashion—nab a denim vest, a pullover hoodie, a tank top, and a long-sleeve shirt, all plastered with the album cover.