Apostle’s A Splinter in the Infinite Noumenon is a sonic rollercoaster that somehow manages to combine the existential dread of realizing we are all just meat on a rock with the absolute urge to run through a brick wall. Released via Terminus Hate City, this Atlanta power trio has delivered an album that sounds less like a standard musical release and more like a beautifully chaotic exorcism. It is a wildly fun, blisteringly positive triumph of post-blackened hardcore that will make you want to high-five your friends while simultaneously weeping over the nature of reality.
After a couple of listens to this kickass release, here are the tracks that stand out at the moment for me. The absolute crown jewel of the tracklist has to be “Oscillating Polarities”. This nearly six-minute epic acts as the emotional anchor of the entire record, taking you on a journey where the lyrics describe a river tunneling down and cutting bare stone with a liquid edge. It builds an incredibly dense, atmospheric wall of sound that feels like trying to stay afloat in a swirling vortex of water and earth under a vibrant sun. When the vocals push through the layers of instrumentation to cry out about trying not to capsize, it hits you right in the chest, offering a massive sense of emotional release before dissolving into a kick-ass ageless abyss.
Then, there is the glorious chaos of Swine. This track takes the concept of consequence and wraps it in imagery of hanging hogs and cleaving flesh. It is deliciously unhinged, with lyrics telling us there are no masters, only consequence, before delivering a massive, eye-opening realization that you should just pray to yourself and watch the universe unfold from the eyes of a higher power itself. It is an absolute anthem for taking control of your own destiny, served with a side of stupid cool riffs and an overwhelming sense of emotional release.
Apostle has crafted some amazing blackened hardcore that forces you to look into the void, but reminds you that you can totally backflip into it. So, grab the record, turn the volume up until you can feel it in your bones, and then prepare to have your mind thoroughly splintered.
Links of interest:
https://www.instagram.com/apostlesucks
https://apostlesucks.bandcamp.com/album/a-splinter-in-the-infinite-noumenon
https://linktr.ee/apostlesucks