SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: MASTER BOOT RECORD – PERSONAL COMPUTER

Master Boot Record
Personal Computer
Metal Blade Records

Once in a generation a musical genre takes a leap and for metal…that leap is Master Boot Record.

The brainchild of technologist/songwriter Victor Love, Master Boot Record is gearing up to drop their 8th full-length album Personal Computer on May 13, 2022.

Described simply as “metal done with a synth,” it is difficult to find any other music that can come close to being compared to the grinding electronic riffs and synth soundscapes. Other Italian bands like Caelus and The Sidh are known for pushing those musical boundaries, but Master Boot Record really does make something special. Indeed, Personal Computer is metal music reimagined for a digital world.

Love describes his style as a hacking of music, referencing his lifelong relationship with tech, synths, and digital worlds. While there are sounds reminiscent of early 80s and 90s synths, like the electronic harpsicord used in the intro of the track 80186 and 80686, there are also transcendent sounds that blend familiar synth sounds with the heaviness of metal sub genres like death metal.

Make no mistake, Personal Computer is an instrumental metal album full of growling depths, rich ballads with Norse imagery and magic, and stunning guitar solos. It’s just that it’s an album that only someone who fully appreciates the potential of technology can create.

Track 80586 highlights the best of what this new synth metal genre has to offer. It’s powerful, it’s epic, and like all great metal music, it tells a story. The grand crescendos create excitement, and the lulls create a dire suspense.

If this track, or even this album, are any indication, the frontiers of metal have just gotten richer…and Victor Love is leading the way with Master Boot Record.

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