If you’re anything like me, you enjoy the novelty that some bands bring to the table. It’s always fun to see how some bands bring different approaches to their music be it an instrumental take, an out-of-the-box performance of a style we’ve all heard before, taking any given genre and really redefining it in a way, and even bringing so many different styles together to create something unique and powerful. I’ve seen many examples of that but it’s the last one we see now as the debut album from A Flock Named Murder is an album I had scoped out months ago but never knew it would be as multi-faceted or detailed as it turned out to be.

Being able to bring in so many influences from all over the wide spectrum of metal is a bold task just on paper, and performing it is another art altogether that only a handful of bands have been able to master and even then those acts continue to perfect it. Inter Arma is probably the best example I can relate to as their last three releases have really taken so much from all of the metal world to create experiences that are wholly unique and gorgeous, and now it’s with A Flock Named Murder that we see something very similar. That’s not to say they sound alike or are in the same vein, but they both have a true amalgamation of styles that result in a multi-layered experience that we haven’t seen before and something that needs so many listens to fully comprehend. The spirit of “An Appointed Time” is not something that I can describe in words as the five tracks spread across a runtime of near-63 minutes is the very definition of an amalgamation of so many different styles that easily range from black metal to sludge to even post-metal that A Flock Named Murder executes surprisingly well given this is their debut. “An Appointed Time” is an extremely colorful, emotional, introspective, and amazingly detailed album that deserves a true applause as this whole record has left me astounded, bewildered, stunned, and other synonyms that I can’t pull out of my ass right now because I still can’t get over the grandeur that A Flock Named Murder managed to accomplish here. It’s a record that really speaks to the soul even if you can’t comprehend the lyrics as the whole sound of “An Appointed Time” is one that really hits home from start to finish, and it’s something that simply can’t be heard just once.

Every now and then, we’re given a record that manages to take metal and spin it right on its head as the band in question really changes things up. It’s because of acts like YOB, Tchornobog, and the aforementioned Inter Arma that we’re able to still get unique morsels of art like this one in these times, and I’m more than happy to put A Flock Named Murder in that small yet very capable company of top-tier bands. “An Appointed Time” is a record that’s still getting my blood pressure to rise just by listening to it, and I can see it growing on me even more to become one of my favorites of the year.

LISTEN to “An Appointed Time” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE A Flock Named Murder on Facebook here.