Ahem...*taps mic*

This here be my beige.party #Introduction

I'm a Gen X (1967) American who works in security for a living. I feel fortunate to have grown up through the 70s, 80s, and the 90s. I kinda look at that as the Yahtzee! of pop culture. What a time to be a nerd!

Music defines me. I don't have just a soundtrack to my life, I have a boxed set, including rare demos and unreleased live recordings. Wanna get to know me? Hang around for my music posts.
A song that's...me?

https://youtu.be/FJt4y4fH938

I am ADHD, and have Dysthymia to boot. I live an unmedicated life, and am kind of a mess as a result. I'm not anti-medication, it's just that I can't seem to stay on the wagon. If you follow me, and I don't immediately follow you back, don't take it personal. I'm trying to deal with over stimulation.

Politically...jeebus. To make it easy, I'm a Democratic Socialist. Honestly, I hate trying to define myself.
What I am (consider the following "AF"): Pro-choice, Pro trans rights, as well as a firm believer that women can do whatever the blue hell they want. I'm pro-sexwork, and pro pineapple on pizza (DO NOT COME AT ME ON THAT ONE).

I DO NOT. LIKE. NAZIS.
If you are a nazi, I do not like you. My great uncle put bushels of you in the ground in WW II. Follow Hitler's example and suck on the end of a loaded Luger.

I'm religious, and by that, I shall refer to a quote attributed to Gandhi: "I consider him religious who recognizes the suffering of others." I am a bit all over the place, and do not blindly follow any specific dogma. I have my thing. It's not everybody's thing, but that's okay. Everybody else has their thing. It may not necessarily be my thing, but that's okay. Whatever your thing is, may it bring you comfort and peace of mind. Just don't be a wanker.

I am very pro Fediverse, and pro FOSS. Technology can be very cool and wondrous, if we choose to make it that way. I'm a Linux user, and have shed all but two mainstream social media platforms. I am attempting to de-google my life. I am VERY anti-AI.

Be kind. Always.

Lord, but I did ramble a one. That's ADHD for ya, folks: LOADS of bonus content!

And now, hashtags...

#Introductions #Mastodon #adhd #MentalHealth #Dysthymia #Music #FreePalestine #FuckCapitalism #FOSS #Android #GrapheneOS #FuckAI #AnarchoCooperativism #Kropotkin #KurtVonnegut #WilliamGibson #EmmaGoldman #TTRPG #StarTrek #GraphicNovels #Comics #Languages #History #Ireland #IrishHeritage #CelticLanguages #DnD2e #GURPS #Skyrim #ElderScrolls #ElderScrollsOnline #Battletech #MechWarriorOnline #CozyGaming #WilliamGibson #Linux #LinuxMint #PopOS #Ubuntu #PCGaming #Tolkien #LOTR #Film #Runequest #Talislanta #HeroSystem #ChampionsRPG #Writing #France #French #Spirituality #Religion #Agnosticism #Books #PhysicalMedia #SciFi #Fantasy

Harvested – Dysthymia Review

By Tyme

Despite a waning stigma, mental illness remains an oft-closeted topic, as those suffering from it struggle not only to cope but to discuss their struggles with others. Here to shed some of their death metal light on the matter are Canadian upstarts Harvested, with their independent debut full-length Dysthymia, which, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine, is defined as a long-lasting form of mild depression. Touching on topics ranging from submitting to one’s long-bottled-up ‘shadow self’ (“Repressed Neurosis”) to the gluttonous way humans abuse the earth (“Unanchored”), something Harvested consider a form of mental illness, they’ve dialed back the lyrically gorier aspects of their eponymous 2022 EP to intensify the focus on their chosen theme. As evidenced by the beautifully rendered CJ Bertram cover art, which main guitarist Mitchi Dimitriadis says depicts ‘an individual in great mental turmoil’ and represents ‘the abstract visualization of the chaos that is the human brain,’ it’s clear that Harvested are committed to the subject. The only question left to answer is whether it’s worth reaping what Harvested’s Dysthymia hopes to have sown.

Nostalgically anchored in 1990s and early 2000s death metal, Harvested also incorporate modern elements of slam and tech-death into the mix to achieve Dysthymia’s goal. This is one brutal fucking record, and from the get, you realize Harvested aren’t messing about, as Dysthymia mashes the potatoes and pulls the meaty steaks off the grill, a muscle-bound manifestation of their Cannibal Corpse, Suffocation, and Deicide (“Harvested,” “The Infestation”) influences. Dimitriadis’ and Vitto Oh’s guitar harmonics are pinched harder than Grier‘s butt cheeks at an enema convention, ensorcelled by viscerally blistering riffs, technically proficient leads, and tornadic, swirling solos. Jacob Collins’ drums1 crack skulls and pummel sternums with whirling fills and destructive double-kicks while Eric Forget’s bass lines remember everything necessary to keep things rumbling along. Adam Semler’s vocals, primarily an homage to George Fisher’s chesty aggression and Glenn Benton’s demonic discernibility, also share elements with Cattle Decapitation’s Travis Ryan at his most high-pitched and raspy. For such a young band, Harvested have planted a flag on the death metal scene, and Dysthymia is the wind through which that flag furls, filled with exuberant, energy-filled performances and solid songwriting.

With highlights aplenty, Dysthymia demands attention by way of its genuine songcraft and near flawless execution. I found myself stank-faced and sweaty through many a listen, whether basking in the glow of galloping riffs and percussive bass on “Unending Madness” or taking in the detailed technicality of the Soreption and The Zenith Passage influenced “Designed Dilemma,” a song that chugs so hard through its last ninety seconds I nearly gave myself whiplash. My favorite track, “Gathered and Deluded,” is a Cattle Decapitation-tinted slammer with pinched harmonic progressions that have been living rent-free in my head for weeks as Forget’s bass marches in flurrying lockstep with Collins’ robotically precise drums, and Selmer channels his best inner Travis Ryan. Harvested is one tight-knit outfit, belying their relatively brief existence and sounding like a band that’s been together much longer.

I’d argue the efforts of Harvested’s “sixth member” deserve as much credit for the success Dysthymia should garner as the band themselves, and that is the excellent work Joe Lyko performed from the booth at Darkmoon Productions. Lyko’s mix and master slathers Dimitriadis’ and Oh’s guitar work in a tone that, for me, defies obvious comparison, as bright and bouncy as it is deadly and devastating. Like a calculated throat punch, it was the first thing that hit me when album opener, “Harvested,” launched, holding my rapt attention all the way through to “The Infestation,” an excellent close to Dysthymia’s very manageable thirty-two-minute runtime. Each instrument exists within its own space, breathing freely and intertwining with high-definition clarity, thereby topping this auditorily successful sundae with a big, fat, juicy cherry.

Lyrically poignant, brutally heavy, and bursting with engagingly twisted, hook-filled instrumentation, Dysthymia is a helluva debut, and one Harvested should be proud of. As poetically as I have waxed, I still believe there’s room for Harvested to grow. God help those who might lay their ears on a sophomore effort from this line-up, should they remain intact. Rest assured, I’ll definitely be watching and waiting. For now, however, I wholeheartedly recommend you spend some long-lasting, quality time with Dysthymia.

Rating: 3.5 / 5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320kbps mp3
Label: Self-Released
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook | Instagram
Releases Worldwide: August 1st, 2025

#2025 #35 #Aug25 #CanadianMetal #CannibalCorpse #CattleDecapitation #DeathMetal #Deicide #Dysthymia #Harvested #Independent #Review #Soreption #Suffocation #TechnicalDeathMetal #TheZenithProcess