Andrew Danso

Initially, Inferno appears to have more in common with the pretentious IDM faithful than the metallic hardcore. The introduction to Pompa Magna, “bar / bar / bar minimizer,” is almost entirely electronic, that hints at what’s to come and glints at Inferno’s electronic capabilities. Newcomers to Inferno might find worth in noting that this introduction has little in common with the remaining numbers; except for the remainder having restrained synths, odd time signatures, noisy vocals and hectic song structures. The majority of the release combines all of the above, along with distorted guitars and energetic drum takes, that loosely reminisces, “Sonic Syndicate,” and “Dillinger Escape Plan”.

Inferno’s experimental backbone tailor the act to be an assault on the ear, rather than a group bolstered delivering on great song writing. What’s unfortunate on Pompa Magna, is Inferno’s lacklustre song writing with depth untouched and riff progressions non-cohesive. This quintet will throw themes familiar and mostly unfamiliar at you, but do so with little construction and cement. That’s not say that this isn’t a valiant effort; it’s just parried by other innovative artists too easily.

6/10 Metal-Mayhem.co.uk