Majin 魔神 – Warpath (EP)

Finding good music is like treasure-hunting. And now and then, we find something truly remarkable. Majin is the latest gem uncovered in our expeditions with their debut EP Warpath, that brims with personality and tasteful brutality.

Deathcore has become a complicated genre to break into. It is paramount to take established sounds of the genre and use them wisely in conjunction with special effects and nuance to set yourself apart. Majin has hit the sweet spot with Warpath. It has a ton going for it, and never really loses its appeal and intensity with how distinguishable each song is from another.

We begin this journey with Argent Cell, that intros the experience with a voice clip that aptly prepares us for what’s in store. Breakdown upon breakdown filled with ferocious vocal parts is the core of the song, rounded out with increasingly interesting use of electronic noises, even on percussion, making it known that this is no ordinary trip.

Monolith enters the fray as the no-nonsense candidate off the record. A fight song, if I’ve ever heard one. Slow earth-shattering breakdown rearing their heads around every verse, makes it a mosher’s dream, with dark unsettling intermissions to keep the essence of the song going, but buys a brief moment to help your bleeding mosh-friend back up for more.

Now… Deceiver. I have had this song on repeat for days. I cannot even fathom where to begin. It’s brutal. It’s in your face. It’s fun. The electronic noises make a prominent return and create a hive-like buzz that carries an absolutely sick atmosphere throughout the song. This accompanied by the top-notch vocal tones and gutturals puts it, and the EP as a whole, on a whole nother level of regard.

At this point on my first listen through the EP, I was sweating, out of breath, and bleeding (don’t ask), but it was all worth it. But that just begs the question – Can it keep up this tempo? Yes, it can, and it does.

The band’s appreciation for anime culture is apparent in their name, their style, their social media pages, and in our next track’s title – Ansatsuken, which is a coined Japanese term for martial arts forms that aim at killing an opponent. A fitting title for a track that beats the life out of eardrums. The dissonant atmosphere suffocates with tempo drops abound.

Judgement Day is the finale and brings home an epic experience with solid groove rhythms, ambient tremolos and vocals you can feel resonate on the bone. A much lighter track in comparison to the rest of the record, yet still ferocious and fantastically crafted. Majin has blown me completely out of the water with Warpath. Set to release new material soon, I am on the edge of my seat in anticipation. I could not be more bullish of these guys. Do yourself a solid, and give them a listen. You will not be disappointed.

Franco Rootman (The Basic Human Principle)