Though it took many near complete line-up swaps and some divergent conceptual path-finding São Paulo, Brazil based death metal band Sinaya have arrived at their thrash-and-groove metal tinged debut in relatively good spirits. ‘Maze of Madness’ is immediate and overall uncomplicated in their execution of mid-paced death/thrash metal that closely hugs the mildly tribal groove of Sinaya‘s newly found arena metal drum work. Consider this a fairly remarkable shift away from the amateur heart of their ‘Obscure Raids’ EP from 2013 towards straightforward, catchy grooves. Though it is ultimately accessible, ‘Maze of Madness’ appears as a ‘safe’ and edge-less vision of death metal that retains value with some dedicated listening.

Formed by guitarist/vocalist Mylena Monaco in 2010 the major constants in Sinaya‘s history have been their all-female line-up and palm-mute heavy rhythm guitar style. Now even more syncopated, mid-paced, and preened over production-wise on their debut full-length, Sinaya achieve a sound that fits into the post-‘Chaos A.D.’ realm of thrash metal where most any old school Brazilian death or thrash metal band began to down-tune, chug harder, and explore the modern pacing of the era. Now, I understand that is a small exaggeration but ‘Maze of Madness’ has more in common with say, post-‘The Beast’ Vader, Pro-Pain (see: “Life Against Fate”) or Kreator‘s ‘Cause For Conflict’ than it does with the extremity of contemporaries like Nervosa, Legion of the Damned or Torture Squad. The majority of the album unfolds at the same jogging pace with slowly developed, simple guitar arrangements.

If you’re not wild about the prospect of an uncomplicated, groove-driven death/thrash album I’d understand but the album is well produced and it’s heaviness comes without any macho posturing or strained performances. I felt the album was unconvincing for the first few listens based on it’s sluggish simplicity as I considered they just weren’t capable of doing much more. As I gave ‘Maze of Madness’ a fair shot I found most of those simple grooves were actually catchy, easily remembered and entirely inoffensive. So, I don’t feel any passion for Sinaya‘s debut but I do think their chugging, growling approximation of death/thrash has some value in casual listening. With no reductive intentions in either direction I ultimately found the album’s simplicity, precision, and moderate pacing key in distinguishing it from the host of messy amateur releases I listen to on a daily basis. It is surely a repetitive and easily digested record but these could be indulged as virtues amidst the careless chaos of every day life.

Digging deeper lairs. 3.0/5.0

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