Chaos Over Cosmos closes out 2025 in style.
After a brief hiatus, Polish multi-instrumentalist Rafal Bowman (all instruments) returns for his fourth album, accompanied by Pakistani vocalist Taha Mohsin (Ascension Throne, Parasitic Infection, Penectomy).
The album gets off to a flying start with the frenzied instrumental Nostalgia for Something That Never Happened, which takes us by surprise, bringing furious tapping before moving on to catchy, jerky riffs, then the two elements blend together at breakneck speed. We are granted a semblance of respite thanks to the keyboard break, then the rhythm kicks in again, leading us to When the Void Laughs, a composition with similar ultra-fast patterns, where the vocalist’s roars finally appear, blending effortlessly with the surrounding fury. The touches of complexity give rhythm to the torrent of notes led by devastating drums, but also by piercing harmonics that tear us apart from all sides, so hasty are they. But once again, it is the keyboards that offer us this moment of respite before the wave returns, bringing catchy passages before rushing us towards Event Horizon Rebirth. The vocalist introduces the track, which takes on a more ethereal tone, ultimately returning to its irregular and scathing but perfectly mastered Melodic Death Metal roots, between which Taha lays down his brutal parts, allowing a few dissonant touches to appear at times. The guitarist takes control of the track, unleashing all his expertise with a range of techniques, each more virulent than the last, before moving on to The Cosmo-Agony – Requiem, where the soaring sound allows us to catch our breath for a moment. This is, of course, followed by a new wave of supercharged complexity created by Rafal, but he is eventually joined by the vocalist, who lends him his power while leaving him passages alone at a brisk pace to complete this long piece, such as the half-melancholic, half-epic part, then their even more explosive collaboration, transporting us to unexpected and surprisingly catchy passages, such as the finale. The album then ends with The Fractal Mechanism, a short instrumental piece bordering on Trip-Hop and Synthwave that allows us to catch our breath and finally emerge from this ocean of notes.
Although it took him three years to create a sequel, Rafal has certainly not been idle! Chaos Over Cosmos is as fierce as ever, and the collaboration with this new vocalist gives The Hypercosmic Paradox a most interesting violence that sometimes even allows us to catch our breath before plunging back in.
85/100
