'Tech' and 'Death'. Two descriptors that, alone, make beautiful sense, unless, of course, you are one of those new-school, core kiddies who have merged the two into a cacophonous, nausea inducing sub-genre that often prefers the all-noodle-and-no-brutal approach. For many of us antiquated, grey-at-the-temples death metal lovers, 'tech' and 'death' will always remain separate, yet equal, loves, that, once in a blue moon, conjoin for a brief and brutal romance. The most notable of these romances, and one us geriatrics can all agree upon, is the mighty Gorguts. That said, even Gorguts got a little carried away - though tame in comparison to some of the tech death bands of today. Gorguts' legacy is one that has paved the road of experimentation in death metal. Often times that experimentation is all fine and dandy for musicians and gearheads, but those laymen among us are often forgotten in the songwriting process. Thankfully, there is one self-proclaimed 'tech death' band out there that hasn't abandoned us old-schoolers. 

Hailing from the same hallowed grounds as the aforementioned gods of technical death metal, Gorguts, Quebec's First Fragment are a challenging-yet-digestible conglomeration of skillful musicians. Their sophomore effort, entitled Dasein, is a journey into realms of technicality that many tech death metal bands seemingly ignore. First and foremost is their penchant for all things neo-classical. Now, this may come as no surprise to those who were privy to the band's debut effort, The Afterthought Of Ecstasy, but, I can already see the look of confusion painted on the horrified faces of the tech death young 'uns who stumble upon First Fragment's unusual, albeit refreshing, approach. In fact, things get even wackier on the track "Prélude En Sol Dièse Mineur", which is a straight-up ode to all things Mexicana, with flamenco-doused bass lines gang-banging every note straight into your unsuspecting, bloodied face. Much of Dasein is not too far removed from peers such as Beyond Creation and Archspire, though poured through an Atheist, Cynic, Pestilence filter. Like many bands hailing from Quebec, who aren't afraid to experiment, First Fragment might be an acquired taste. But, once their brand of tech death sinks in, there is a little something for everyone, old and young alike.