Toothless – Misinformed (EP Review)

Posted on May 4, 2020 by walladmin

Toothless – Misinformed
Released: May 5th, 2020

Toothless Lineup

Travis Antoniello | Vocals
Eric Novroski | Bass/Vocals
Brian Zannetti | Guitar
James Slattery | Drums

Toothless online:

Formed in 2015 and hailing from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, the four-piece Metalcore band Toothless takes influence from bands like The Dillinger escape plan, The Chariot and Every time I Die. This list of influences is very apparent with odd time signatures, pulverizing drumming, gnashing vocals and pummeling hooks on display in their latest EP Misinformed. The EP explores themes of obsession with ant-intellectualism and the weaponizing of disinformation in the modern age.

Opening with ‘The Neighbors’ it shows off the band’s tight songwriting ability from the get go. Travis Antoniello’s harsh straining vocals delivers an eerie ambience which then begins a slow, heavy descent turned full nosedive into James Slattery’s pummeling drums. Brian Zannetti’s technical guitar work is reminiscent of mathcore style, and these two elements complement each other greatly as it creates an anxiety inducing sequence of odd time signatures and a skull pounding drum beat. It really adds to the tracks peak of harsh vocals towards the climax.

Released as a single, ‘Grinner’ powers full speed ahead with its unrelenting onslaught of intense guitar and bass lines accompanied by aggressive drums which lets their influences shine through. The track features guest vocalist Justin Bonitz (Tallah) who adds to fray with biting eccentric vocals that don’t hold back whatsoever and bring it all full circle. The frantic chaos ends with a good hook and breakdown which leaves you wanting more.

The closing track, ‘Timeline: Eroded’ shows the versatility of the band. It creates an atmosphere of dread with the ongoing technical instrumentation work and build up of the finale as the only clean vocals on the EP are being delivered which then are molded into harsh vocals. This creates a feeling of tension as it delivers the overall themes of the EP then fades out into a dream like atmosphere.

Misinformed is a solid EP and does some things very well with the band’s tight songwriting and instrumentation work, but other elements of it leave little to the imagination as it follows their influences very closely, sometimes too close. I do believe that Toothless can create a well-received LP in the future if they incorporate more elements into the mix and give themselves more room to grow. Overall, Misinformed is a decent EP that is worth a listen if you’re into mathcore.