Archives: Volume 4 (read our review here) felt, to be honest, a little tired and stretched to the max (even with its short run-time). The djent overload had reached its plateau and there was very little that actually stood out, even in a mammoth series like this that is made up mostly of fragments of songs and sonic idea sketches. Each release has been chronologically working its way towards the modern-day demos of Misha Mansoor, so there is an expectation of evolution as we get closer to the end, which Archives: Volume 3 has, if not in huge amounts. Yes, there are more chugging djent polyrhythms and Meshuggah-worship in songs like “Imaginary,” “Sinus,” and “Unconditional” – this is Mansoor’s bread and butter and he does it well, and these tracks do have some outstanding melodies and...
