Nu metal and prog… unlikely bedfellows, but it’s been known to happen. Look at L.D. 50 by Mudvayne, back when they were young and frighteningly talented. Look at the early work of Deftones, before they outgrew genre labels altogether (sing hosanna, we love Deftones).

Well, here’s another example for you. Gizmachi’s “The Imbuing”.

They were on Shawn Crahan’s ridiculously-named “Big Orange Clown” record label. Maybe that’s why they weren’t more popular, or maybe it’s because their music is so damn challenging. Either way, they deserve a bit more exposure, so here I am.

At first, this album sounds like a clattering, scatterbrained mess. But persevere, and it will reward you. A lot of the typical nu metal influences can be heard here, such as Helmet, Alice in Chains and a hefty dose of Faith No More. But Gizmachi give their music a more proggy twist that sets them apart. I even hear a bit of Cynic’s influence here and there. Fancy that.

As I said, at first, this sounds like a mess of weird time signatures, muddy riffs and screaming. But each song quickly opens out into a big, soaring melodic explosion courtesy of powerful singer Sean Kane. These cleanly-sung moments provide early points of access to this complex and challenging work, and before long you are noticing other parts around them which get your head nodding. The guitars are quite inventive, running from chugging sludge to complex-sounding solos and mathcore-like screeching. The drummer deserves a medal just for avoiding serious injury over the course of the album. Skeleton-threatening time signatures jostle for space with sickening breakdowns and double kick madness. It’s as crazy as the rest of the album. So fairly crazy.

Hybrid Theory, this most certainly is not! But for those willing to invest the time and effort, you won’t be disappointed. If you want to head straight to the more complex end of nu metal, check this out.