Eryn Non Dae – Hydra Lernaia

The massive success Gojira have attained in the last few years a little everywhere have induced a lot more people to turn their heads and pay attention to what France has to offer in terms of heavy and extreme music.
One of the most interesting propositions I’ve heard lately is Eryn Non Dae, a young collective from Toulouse who peddle a style of music not too far removed from fellow countrymen Gojira, though the best possible description for their debut full-length work “Hydra Lernaia” would be Meshuggah meets Neurosis. See, END merges the polyrhythmic, low-tuned and frantic assault of the Swedes with the brooding and monolithic ambiences of the post-metal pioneers, creating an overall atmosphere that truly embodies the term “hybrid”.
On the opening, seven-minute plus track “When Time Elapses”, the pummelling, detuned guitars and idiosyncratic tempo shifts denote a fairly prominent Meshuggah influence, it’s so intense and so wrapped in labyrinthine arrangements that will leave you in state of pure bewilderment. The caustic screams of vocalist Mathieu, while limited in range, are heavily reminiscent of Jens Kidman, yet they totally suit the music. The following track “Blistering Hate” treads on similar ground, though it sees a slight increment of dissonance into their chugging riffage. “Existence Asleep” starts with Mika’s characteristic low-end bass rumble and sees a darker and denser atmosphere permeating their oppressive sound. And that’s probably the biggest difference between “Hydra Lernaia” and their previous EP “The Never Ending Whirl of Confusion”, since nowadays the French collective seem to favour denser and oppressive ambiences in detriment of ceaseless spasms of aggression.
For those who enjoy their music dark and intelligent, and groups that can merge together diverse musical textures and layers, you should definitely give a listen to this record, and hopefully it will see Eryn Non Dae grasping a similar buzz as Gojira. (7.5/10)

Band info: www.myspace.com/end1freefr
Label info: www.metalblade.com