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Forged from the ashes of the mighty Gridlink<\/strong>, Barren Path<\/strong> emerge from the blistered earth, hellbent on blazing a pathway of grinding destruction amid charred bursts of white-hot extremity. Legendary grind axeman Takafumi Matsubara overcame a career-threatening injury to shred once more, leading the way with fellow Gridlink<\/strong>er Bryan Fajardo (drums), along with bassist Mauro Cordoba and guitarist Rory Kobzina, who both featured on Gridlink<\/strong>\u2019s swansong, Coronet Juniper<\/a> (2023). Adding to Barren Path<\/strong>\u2019s gold-plated grind pedigree is the addition of vocalist Mitchell Luna (Maruta<\/strong>, Shock Withdrawal<\/strong>). In classic grind fashion, Barren Path<\/strong>\u2019s anticipated debut Grieving doesn\u2019t simply blur the lines between what constitutes an EP or LP, but fucking obliterates them across a scant but deadly thirteen minutes of calculated brutality. Like any quality grind, you can bank on the brief runtime carrying over triple the intensity of your average metal album, making repeat listens an adrenaline-charged breeze.<\/p>\n Gridlink<\/strong> always carried an air of grace about them. Yes, grace and grind may seem disparate entities; however, through their gnarly, yet pristinely performed, razor-sharp precision, melodicism and technical edge, Gridlink<\/strong> stood out from the pack. The heavy Gridlink<\/strong> representation thankfully doesn\u2019t come off as a simple continuation of their legacy in a different guise. Sure, the melodic sensibilities, technicality, whiplashing speed, and machine-gun blasts may share similarities with the Gridlink<\/strong> name, including the distinctive guitar work of Matsubara. Yet make no mistake, Grieving is its own unhinged beast and vital new dimension for its architects to expand from.<\/p>\n Barren Path<\/strong> tenderizes the predominant grind attack with a deathly thump, complemented by an altogether beefier production and sonic profile. The guttural vocal eruptions add a brutal, bulldozing death metal edge, offsetting the predominant piercing screams and higher-pitched variations. From the pummeling abuse, deadly drumwork, and full throttle urgency of opener \u201cWhimpering Echo,\u201d through to the climaxing barrage of assaulting, belligerent deathgrind on \u201cIn the End\u2026 The Gift is Death,\u201d Barren Path<\/strong> leaves nothing in the tank, upholding an incredible level of precision savagery across the album\u2019s brief yet gripping runtime. Operating with ruthless efficiency into its sub-minute framework, \u201cPrimordial Black\u201d brims with uncontrollable energy, as rabid dual vox, breakneck thrashy tidbits, and frayed blackened edges shade the song\u2019s brutal deathgrind delivery. Comparably longer cuts (\u201cThe Insufferable Weight,\u201d \u201cRelinquish,\u201d \u201cHorizonless\u201d) allow extra time for Barren Path<\/strong> to unleash their action-packed battery of creative songwriting and infectious songcraft.<\/p>\n Occasional melodic motif or techy passage aside (such as the playful mid-section and spoken word incantations of \u201cIsolation Wound\u201d), little room is reserved for palette cleansing moments, or an Nasum<\/strong>-esque circuit breaker groove. This is not suggestive that Grieving is one-dimensional or lacking in structural variety. Barren Path<\/strong>\u2019s clever knack for drop on a dime tempo and riff changes, and deceptively catchy writing keeps the listener firmly dialed in. Matsubara and Kobzina\u2019s deadly axework and visceral array of sharp, dissonant, and often infectious deathgrind riffage powers Barren Path<\/strong>\u2019s blistering attack. Meanwhile, Fajardo delivers a beastly, expert display of primo deathgrind drumming, a controlled collision of lightspeed rhythms, crafty finesse, and full-throttle aggression. Grieving is also blessed with a killer production job and dynamic master, avoiding the pitfalls that can hamper modern grind affairs when saddled with compressed, overly loud profiles. Abrasive and relentless in execution, the sound is a burly, organic delight, keeping ear fatigue at bay and maintaining an air of clarity and sharpness without diluting Barren Path<\/strong>\u2019s brutish traits.<\/p>\n Drawbacks are few and far between. As touched on, the short runtime leaves you hankering for more, and I\u2019m curious to see how Barren Path<\/strong> develop their sound and perhaps expand upon the prominent death influence and hyperspeed thrash elements on future endeavors. Barren Path <\/strong>emerges from Gridlink<\/strong>\u2019s formidable shadow to unleash a teeth-gnashing, refreshing debut, using their death-plated grind as a catalyst for carving through exciting fresh pastures. Though guilty of leaving the listener wanting more, the addictive replay value and quality songcraft largely fill the void of feeling marginally shortchanged. Barren Path<\/strong>\u2019s violent attack, colorful chemistry, and precision, technical musicianship leave displaced jaws on the floor with the sheer intensity and locked-in tightness. Grieving is top-tier grind to batter the senses and soothe the mind.<\/p>\n \ufeff<\/p>\n Rating<\/strong>: 4.0\/5.0 \n\tGive in to Your Anger:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Forged from the ashes of the mighty Gridlink, Barren Path emerge from the blistered earth, hellbent on blazing…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":540393,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3936],"tags":[12294,174135,174136,77,174137,82250,23454,174138,174139,269,174140,6080,6082,174141,16,15,65677],"class_list":{"0":"post-540392","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-music","8":"tag-4-0","9":"tag-barren-path","10":"tag-deathgrind","11":"tag-entertainment","12":"tag-gridlink","13":"tag-grieving","14":"tag-grindcore","15":"tag-japanese-metal","16":"tag-maruta","17":"tag-music","18":"tag-nasum","19":"tag-review","20":"tag-reviews","21":"tag-shock-withdrawal","22":"tag-uk","23":"tag-united-kingdom","24":"tag-willowtip-records"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115470258997968217","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/540392","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=540392"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/540392\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/540393"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=540392"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=540392"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=540392"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/BarrenPath-Grieving02-500x281.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
DR<\/strong>: 8 | Format Reviewed<\/strong>: 320 kbps MP3
Label<\/strong>: Willowtip Records<\/a>
Websites<\/strong>: Bandcamp<\/a> | Facebook<\/a>
Releases Worldwide<\/strong>: October 21st, 2025<\/p>\n