If you’re looking to satisfy your craving for brutal deathcore, look no further than The Acacia Strain. The Massachusetts deathcore pioneers released a new single this past Friday titled A that is sure to satisfy your need for blast beats and breakdowns.

The first track “Inverted Person,” definitely displays some versatility from the band. While singer Vincent Bennett largely sticks to his formula of visceral, yet completely audible vocals, the music definitely takes us in a slightly different direction incorporating elements of doom metal and melodic guitars. The second track “Chhinnamasta,” is a little more true to the sound that we’ve come to expect from the band. The back and forth choppy guitar riffs in the song are beautifully destructive when paired with drumming that is reminiscent of early Sepultura. 

Overall, if you’re a fan of The Acacia Strain’s previous efforts, you’ll love this single. A is the fourth installment of two song singles released from the band with each single being titled with a letter. With the release of this single, we now have D, E, C, and A, leaving fans wondering what exactly the band are spelling out with these releases. The current consensus is that the word they are spelling is decay but we will have to wait for the remaining releases to find out for sure. Regardless of what the mystery is, the band have certainly found a way to bring some excitement and mystique to their fans, many of whom are eagerly awaiting for these efforts to be released on vinyl as the cover art for each record will work together to make one cohesive display. I for one will be looking forward to the remaining releases and, if you haven’t already, I suggest you check out the band’s new material as well.

I’m Music Magazine Contributing Writer Jason Jarvis