Track listing: Internal Narrative
He's back--Ben Sebastian, aka the man behind The Sonic Symphonic Podcast--and it appears he's spent some quality time in a personal Hell writhing within his own innards to create his latest single/video for "Internal Narrative." Definitely don't pass on watching the video, either. It's worth a view if for no other reason than seeing the person covered in worm/noodle/sausages and the chubby baby floating atop a roomful of meaty by-products...and much more!
But with Sebastian, the visual is just the fun part. I mean, who wants to stare at an album cover while you listen to a new face-melter? His series of AI-generated videos definitely provide a suitable visual universe for his foray into his own brand of dark 'n' heavy metal.
I claw out my eyes
Myself, I despise
Carrion, infested with flies
Carry on, and self cannibalise
Visual-components aside, "Internal Narrative" gets darker than some of Sebastian's previous efforts. Darker, in that the song deals with our own internal voices. Some may call it imposter syndrome. For some it's straight-up depression or self-doubt or self-loathing. But as with all subject matter, Ben dives deeper: "Fat and ageing greying hole of faeces, Pushed out from turgid womb of sick, Cancerous at core, failure of species, Find the nearest bridge and jump off quick." Goddamn! We all question ourselves, but this?! When the goal is to write material of a dark nature, darker and more horrifying is just what the doctor ordered. The Pet Sematary cat's meow, if you will.
Touching on the music for a bit (this is a music review, right?), the drum fill in the intro is absolutely monstrous. Sebastian's vocal fry, screams and howls are up-to-par with his repertoire. Guitar and keyboard solos shred, as they should. There's an orchestral synth sound just high enough in the mix over the final minute to give the track a grandiose climax worthy of the preceding 2-minutes' build-up.
What else can I say? Ben brings it, song after song. Listen for yourself. Try to find a track amongst his recent releases that doesn't quite stand up to the others. It's not gonna happen. Check out "Internal Narrative" and much, much more at faceripperrecords.com.