Tiny jolts of shock value

Coyly opening with the tranquil sounds of lapping waves, Singaporean trio Wormrot’s 4^th studio album Hiss delivers nonstop intensity, mostly through a catalog of microsongs. While under the guise of Grindcore, a reckless fusion of death metal and hardcore punk, Hiss contains fun little genre-bending surprises littered throughout and even a decent amount of emotional violin lines, proving that this group is bringing more to the table than just a dirty, massive wall of sound.

Microsongs are standard for the Grindcore genre and Hiss provides plenty. Hiss is twenty-one tracks long, the shortest being the aptly named “Unrecognizable,” as it blends in and out without much notification, clocking in at eleven seconds and “Shattered Faith” which discusses birth to grave in just nineteen seconds.

While those two tracks pass without much fanfare, at forty-four seconds, “Pale Moonlight” breaks up the heavy aura that’s been presented on the album thus far. It opens with a starchy, clean drum set solo and then brings in an airy, almost Latin dance beat featuring open high hat while echoing screamo soars in the space above.

“All Will Wither” offers a brief bit of breathing room as it is a slightly slower tempo and feels delicate as it features only drum set and vocals. The Hiss from the album’s title is played up to full effect in the voice of lead singer Arif Suhaimi as his quiet Ying Yang Twins style whispers are shrouded in heavy reverb.

While those surprises within the microsongs keep the listener amused, the longer songs that break the form of the genre are where the beauty of this album truly lies. The most frantic, sporadic, squeal of delight is brought by the track “Seizures.” It starts out unassuming enough before moving into several distinct musical sections. Pounding double pedal action devolves into controlled chaos by the addition of hi-hat accents before moving into a moment of thrash, followed by a hard rock, ACDC style gallop and exiting with an intense death metal chug. While all this is going on, Suhaimi gives “Seizures” his full vocal range from guttural growls to high pitches screams and even a moment of what could only be described as a controlled upchuck. Only Wormrot truly knows where this song is going, the listener is just along for the ride, holding on for dear life, and enjoying every minute of it.

The ending of the track “Desolate Landscapes” holds an almost sentimental feel, like if a character in a movie was holding on to the edge of a cliff saying his last goodbyes to a long-lost love, knowing he is about to plummet to his death. His final words ring out as he falls into the abyss.

Hiss closes out with an extended masterpiece that is both heavy and euphoric, “Glass Shards.” Channeling their inner Yellowcard, this song features an outrageous violin solo that really gets in there and tugs on the heartstrings. There is one line played by the violin that hits on some notes outside of the key’s canon that will make a face scrunch up with happy, ugly tears. The world is in need of more metal violin influence.

To close out the album, the ending of “Glass Shards” gives the listener some aftercare by returning to the tranquil sounds of lapping waves that were introduced in the album’s beginning. On May 31, 2022, Suhaimi announced his departure from the band to focus on his family. As Hiss is Wormrot’s most musically diverse album to date, maybe Suhaimi’s departure will spark even more fresh ideas for future projects. Dear Wormrot, keep ‘em coming! The Grindcore community is here for you.