Gridlink
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Brought to life in 2004 after the dissolve of the already maddeningly technical and abstract grindcore messiahs Discordance Axis, Gridlink came into the new era with a style even more refined and revolutionary. Their debut album Amber Gray showcased the hyper extreme chops of everyone involved, in just 11 minutes we were treated with mind bending tech riff work, drumming fast enough to travel from Earth to Neptune in twenty minutes, and some of the most absurd vocalization brutal music has to offer. Even being so succinct, it feels like you just listened to twelve different albums smashed together with awesomeness and nonstop, like, coolness. how would anyone not consider this a modern extreme monument?
Amber Gray had a distinct flare to the overall sound, it was recorded without any use of bass guitar, just shreddingly high pitched leads and riffs forever. But their next album Orphan changed that, and it's plain to see the difference. It might not be the focal point at all, but you can hear some low end action, as opposed to just none from the debut. Jon Chang also brought back some of his deep growls from the Discordance Axis days. So there was some evolution in their sound, but still had the trademark gnarliness we'd come to love.
It was a longer gap between Orphan and their third full length, but boy oh boy, they really wanted to step it up here. Longhena graced this planet with its presence in 2014, and it is truly a special work in my eyes. They upped the progression tenfold, making an album about as long as the two previous works combined, showcasing yet again a wider array of ability. Longer and more tightly structured arrangements, heavy emphasis on melody (albeit brutal melody) and there's also a god damn violin. This is actually my favorite grind album ever made.
Gridlink would call it a day soon after for a number of reasons (including their guitarist literally going too hard and picking up some injuries in the arm and hand area), but this was as perfect a swansong as we could ever ask for. We had 10 years of Gridlink, and in that time they established themselves as a serious force in modern extreme music, and at least for me, were a hugely inspiring and beloved group, that I really appreciate. They weren't just a continuation of Discordance Axis, not at all. There could never be another DA, and there could never be another Gridlink.