Gather Scatter

Not until the metal world decided to take the angular and math induced sounds of Touch and Go and invent Metalcore (which would spawn the Screamo scene) did the notions of such legends as Shellac and Slint get a second, updated viewing. Millions, existing firmly outside of that last decade of the 20th century, have managed to put together an album that not only pays immense homage to the sounds of "pure" indie Chicago, but fuses it with the stylistic developments that came afterwards thanks to the tinkering of highly technical metal nerds like Cave In or Botch. The opener, "Lest the Professor Catch Fire," is a prime example of the latter, a metalcore pummeller that is equaled only by the best established bands in the genre. Thankfully, Millions chooses not to devote all of their energy to such a sound, although they certainly have the chops to do so -- the band's rhythm section is a monster, and the guitar playing is at once a math metal monolith as well as a nod to the tech-Death of Chuck Schuldiner, choosing to opt for a bit of `retro' is a welcome shift track to track on Gather Scatter. This album can sometimes seem like it exists out of time, parts resembling a capsule of Chicago at its angular peak, with other sections a glorification of metal core before it got co-opted by angsty teens with too much hair gel, but the truth is, these guys pull it off. Millions have the energy, the chops, and the knowledge to take the best of their recent musical ancestry and deliver an album that is visceral, complicated, and downright interesting to listen to.