Cognizance – In Light, No Shape
Release Date: 1st May 2026
Label: Willowtip Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Progressive Death Metal, Technical Death Metal.
FFO: Death, Extol, Meshuggah, Carrion Vael, ATRÆ BILIS, Allegaeon.
Review By: Eric Wilt
Cognizance dropped Malignant Dominion in 2019 and with it heralded the arrival of a big new talent in the worlds of progressive and technical death metal. Not ones to let grass grow under their feet, Cognizance followed this with Upheaval in 2021 and Phantazein in 2024, both albums cementing their place in the upper echelons of forward-thinking death metal bands. Now they’re back once again with their crushing fourth album, In Light, No Shape. Cognizance is comprised of longtime members, guitarists Alex Baillie and Apostolis Karydis, bassist Chris Binns, and drummer David Diepold. Observant readers will note the absence of original vocalist Henry Pryce’s name from the band’s current line-up. Pryce stepped down in 2023 and instead of bringing in someone new to tackle vocal duties, Baillie has stepped up to add lead vocals to his CV. Baillie’s vocals fit perfectly with the band’s aggressive sound and are similar enough to Pryce’s vocals, that even longtime fans will barely notice a difference.
Combining progressive death metal’s adventurous tendencies and atmospheric groove with technical death metal’s razor-sharp riffs, In Light, No Shape wastes no time in bludgeoning the listener with Cognizance’s unrelenting death metal. Transient Fixations begins with a few measures of Cynic-like clean strumming before the band jumps feetfirst into the kind of music that served them so well on their previous three albums. Cognizance previewed the album on YouTube with the tracks Witness Marks, A Game of Proliferation, and The Zone. From A Game of Proliferation’s ultra-precise riffing to Witness Mark’s barrage of blast beats to album closer The Zone’s churning groove, these three tracks give listeners a good idea of what to expect from the album as a whole.
Cognizance launched themselves onto the progressive/technical death metal scene in a big way seven years ago, and every subsequent album has just reaffirmed the band’s ability to write catchy and challenging music that never seems to get old or sound overdone. In Light, No Shape follows the same formula, and the results are quite possibly the best of Cognizance’s career. If you love death metal, especially the progressive or technical kinds, In Light, No Shape is a must-hear album.
(4.5 / 5)
