Some folk have a flair for the dramatic. Toronto’s Mirror Neuron fall into the category simply because they released an unholy fucking terror of a record at the end of 2024. The 39-minute full length is a cornucopia of heavy stylings. The wild, opening riff of “Any Excuse to Hurt,” feels at home with “Colored Sands” era Gorguts or an Inter Arma record. The sardonic lyrics with the hardcore influenced delivery in “Cross to Bear” gave some Jock Powerviolence vibes (though the lead guitar parts make this song feel like crossover).

Mirror Neuron instrumentation dazzles on Great Content. “Even in Disgrace” is a showcase of the bands blending of stylings. We’re introduced to a smooth pad-synth sound backed by a bass riff that feels so at home in the more progressive bridge, and after that we’re bludgeoned by syncopated chugging riffs and dissonance. Try to soak it all in before the whiplash into some HM-2 worshipping chainsaw riffs. I’m not sure I even want to try describe just how eerily the synth sounds along side the guitar riff as the song comes to a close.

This album has great range where the sum of all parts enhance the artistic expression rather than detract in away that distracts the mind. Lyrically it takes us to the seedy underbelly of reality, as the band explains below. Meanwhile, vocally, Alec and Logan touch into different aspects of extreme vocal stylings. Shrieks, growls, highs and lows, and straight-up hardcore shouts, are all facets of this record, and they fit (yeah, even the part where we get gang-vocals over synthesizers).

It’s equal parts death metal meets Tragedy / HHIG based crust. As we dig into the interview the band assess their own musical talent, but I think that downplays the creativity in their musicianship. This is art. It doesn’t follow a prescribed formula. It’s not always flash, but instead you’re sprinting through the labyrinth while the barriers sprout from the ground to force the directional shift…

Enough of my yapping, put the record on already and enjoy this Q&A session with Mirror Neuron.

SO TO START OFF: WHAT WAS YOUR WRITING PROCESS LIKE FOR GREAT CONTENT?

“Logan writes the riffs and structures for the songs. Alec and Logan then hash it out and talk about ways to enhance melodic ideas and layer in more rhythmic complexity. Though we’re not as proficient and shreddy as some bands, making technical music that also retains that Deathwish hardcore energy the band started with is something we aspire to do with our songwriting. We’re inspired by bands like Dysrhythmia and Baring Teeth where guitar and bass have parity and share similar goals, so Alec will write the bass parts with polyphony in mind.”

WHAT WAS THE RECORDING PROCESS FOR THIS RELEASE?

“This record had a bit of an unusual and out of order recording process; at the time the band had a drummer (Andrew) who we're close friends with but at the time had recently relocated to the east coast - schedules were hard to pin down, so we landed on recording guitar and bass first to a grid and then drums would come last once we figured out the best way to record Andrew remotely.”

“As time went by, Alec was doing [temporary] programmed drums for another project and proposed that Andrew compose / arrange his parts and we lean into a more electronic style. In the end, the drum arrangements sounded a lot more ‘realistic’ than expected and a lot of credit goes to Harley Tamblin at Acrylic for working them in really organically - I don't think the goal was ever to try and pass them off as this 'off the floor' drum performance but I think they ended up having a really natural sound that suited the rest of the mix and master.”

“Vocals came last, Alec used to do much more high pitched ‘hardcore’ style vocals in the band but lost his voice after a serious illness many years ago; so now he’s been reborn as more of a “low guy” and Logan has likewise come into his own as a hardcore vocalist, It’s really benefited the the record (and the band going forward in general) and made us commit to a more brutal sound.”

HOW WAS GREAT CONTENT MIXED AND MASTERED?

“We recorded, mixed, and mastered with Harley Tamblin at Acrylic Recording and he did a wonderful job. He really cares about every minute detail and had a lot to contribute creatively to the sound of the record.”

WHAT IS THE CONSISTENT THEMES ON GREAT CONTENT?

“I think it goes without saying that metal (or more broadly extreme music) is a safe space to bring to light challenging and uncomfortable realties. It's also likely we're a bit older than a lot of bands releasing debut records, we've had some more years under our belts to experience the more difficult parts of living that I think add some weight to the songs that we just wouldn't have been able to do in our teens and 20s. I love Cannibal Corpse and how over the top the imagery / lyrics are, but it's nowhere near as brutal as some of the routine things you experience as you get older, like having a miscarriage, or being diagnosed with a debilitating illness. Anyway, I don't think the goal of the band is to be misery porn, but at the same time I think our writing has grappled with these experiences more thoughtfully as time has gone by.”

“AS BLEAK AS SOME OF THE THEMES CAN BE, AT THE END OF THE DAY WE WANT THE LISTENER TO HAVE A GREAT TIME. THIS RECORD IS THE CULMINATION OF MANY YEARS OF DISCUSSIONS WE’VE HAD ABOUT HEAVY MUSIC AND ALL THE STUFF THAT GETS US GEEKED ABOUT IT. OUR HOPE IS THAT IT’S A ROLLERCOASTER OF NASTY RIFFS, INTERESTING RHYTHMS AND POWERFUL EMOTIONS THAT DON’T LET UP UNTIL THE VERY END”.

- ALEC @MIRRORNEURON_

WHAT ARE THE LYRICAL THEMES THROUGHOUT THE ALBUM?

“The songs on Great Content follow the overall theme of modern media consumption. This song ‘Interior Semiotics’ is named after a video on YouTube that is a filming of an ‘infamous’ performance art piece; we won’t speak to the subject matter of the art in question, but what has stuck with us over the years is the camera-person’s intuition to pan across the audience. There’s a variety of reactions: some are heavily invested, some are uncomfortable, some are looking down the lens mocking the artist. It turned the video into something less about the performance it’s filming and more into something about viewership in general.”

“The video replaced the thing it was trying to capture; we’re seeing the performance mutate into ‘content’. The lyrics also detail real stories we’ve encountered, like a father who spent their family’s savings on a collection of Bored Ape NFTs, feeling it has finally provided him future status and an inheritance for his young children. And finally the overall anxiety for creative people that after all the vilification of AI, are we actually good enough to out-compete it? A lot of threads carry across the record.”

ANY SHOWS OR TOURS COMING UP THIS YEAR?

“We've played shows over the years but given that we're short a few performing members we don't have any immediate plans to play live. If we get a sense that there's some growing demand to see these songs live then we'll look into filling out a new line-up.”

NOW WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE BAND? GOALS? MILESTONES?

“We're both talking about an album 2. There's no plans to do any left turns or make it a radical departure from what you hear on Great Content but I think it's safe to say we just want MORE. Faster, busier, heavier. “

Go spin Great Content at their bandcamp link listed below!

Follow them on Bandcamp : Mirror Neuron

Writer : @garevthistle

Editor : @just_reidz

01/07/25