So I was super happy for the band when they signed with Transcending Obscurity, a perfect label for them. And the duo (Sunshine Schneider—guitar, Bass, Vocals and Connor Gordon—drums) has not changed their delivery of churning Ulcerate—death metal mixed with a little introspection. Of course, with the jump to a big label comes better, tighter production, and of course, Transcending Obscurity’s trademark cool art, packaging, and merch- well deserved indeed.

So how are the new 10 tracks contained within Memories Fragmented? It is a continuation of the material on The Elemental Binding EP; blissfully dissonant, yet elegant murky, atonal death metal that’s heavily inspired by Ulcerate, Gorguts, Artificial Brain, Altarage, Ulsect, Dodecahedron,  Nightmarer, and such. But where those bands mostly leave you nauseous and spiraling into insanity, Crown of Madness is a little more measured and paced, with a well-crafted sense of mood and more tempered, despondent hues.

Don’t get me wrong, tracks like “Burdened”, “Deafening”, “Sea of Fangs”, “Dreamless Nights No Longer” and such still bring the discordant, chaotic lurch a stammer of their peers, but it is when the band reigns things in a bit and glosses the chaos with a little more contemplative where they really shine.

Tracks like “Sovereign”, “When I Dont Remember You”, “Ashes of Mine”, “Hollow Thresher”  and closer “The Grand Design”, while still monstrously dissonant, have palpable emotional, almost morose layers, not just pure discordant fury. and it makes the tracks just that little bit more engaging and fulfilling, instead of just pure dread, as many of their peers deliver.

However, as I stated in past reviews, I miss the delicate piano use that was in the debut EP that made the duo even more engaging, but I’m super happy for these guys and hope for continued success on future albums.  Another winner for transcending Obscurity as they continue their red-hot 2025.

Continuing the Ulcerate-styled artful dissonance they created on The Void, Elemental Binding shows a duo in lockstep with their chosen sound and influences albeit with a little more melody and pacing.

The churning, discordance is still present in spades, and Summer Schneider again delivers her impressive bellows with Connor Gordon doing everything else, including the clean, hefty production. The four songs consist of atonal, shifty blasts, and more controlled lurching moments.

But as I mentioned earlier, said there seems to be a little more… melody? in this effort just listen to the opening number “Immortal Eyes”,  ‘Wrenching Nostalgia” or “Vile Sun”. It’s still heavily Ulcerate and Artificial Brain-influenced but with a little sense of almost somber mood and harmony lurking under the miasmal churn, of which there is plenty on “Roots, Limb and Sky”.

The only thing missing on Elemental Binding is the piano that was used on “Pale” and “False God’s Hymn” from The Void to great effect, but this is still a cool little self-released project, and I’m looking forward to the impending full-length. I’m just hoping it’s not simply the songs from the 2 EPs re-released on one release.

With a shared love of video games and death metal, this couple has delivered a stellar, self produced, 5 song, 18 minute EP that delivers and excellent take on brooding, haunting, discordant death metal, with a few surprises thrown  in here and there.

One surprise is early on, with some gorgeous piano work (courtesy of Claine Lamb) that starts opening/ introductory track “Pale”, I just wish it had been utilized a little more in the rest of the tracks (it’s used in just two). A second surprise, is second track “Eternal Feeding” which delivers a more blackened metal blast within its atonal kaleidoscope . Another surprise, is that it’s the wife half of the duo, Sunshine Schneider, that delivers the gnarly bellows and shriek’s in the vocal department and the guitars, while Connor Gordon handles the drums and professional, hefty mixing. And they clearly work very well together.

The EPs best tracks are the last 2 with “Anguish” (featuring Kaija Krimson of Anarcheon), a shifty, patient, nightmarish number and closer “False God’s Hymn”, where the piano briefly shows up again to create a haunting duality with the dense discordance perfectly.

Clearly, a talented duo, who are also responsible for symphonic black/death metal project Arboreal also, Crown of Madness is a tasty little EP that will hopefully translate into an equally tasty full length sometime soon.