Forty songs in forty-two minutes. Yes, this is what makes up Dogma, the collection of all Asterisk*'s recorded material since the Swedish grindcore/noise rock band's formation in 1999 - from their Dogma I: Death of a Dromologist LP all the way to Dogma IV: Songs for the Polar Grinder Compilation, and even includes a bludgeoning cover of Queen's (no, that's not a typo) "Ogre Battle" the band recorded for Dynamite With a Laserbeam, a Queen tribute album.

Asterisk* - vocalist Jonas a.k.a. Angel, guitarist Stefan a.k.a. Rose, and drummer Andre a.k.a. Beetle - are a forward-looking band that emphasizes a progressive philosophy while creating some of the most fantastically psychotic noise around with inconceivably fast tempos, thrashing guitars, menacing drums, and chaotic vocals that oscillate between frantic screams and harsh guttural growls. Some perfect examples of these bi-polar vocals is the aptly titled "The peace of exhaustion" and "Empty from day zero" to name a few. Melodies? Song structure? Uh no, as with most grindcore, these seemingly fundamental elements won't be found here. But what can be is unconventional, complex, thoughtful, inventive music, which, because of its sheer aggressive, grating nature, may not be for everyone. Let's just say it's not easy on the ears. Fans of grindcore, death metal, thrash, speed metal, hardcore punk, et al, should be into this. But remember to play this record loud. Go on, scare your neighbors. They're already suspicious of you anyway…

But back to the topic at hand. This whole record is packed with super-fast, insanely heavy, punishing music with wonderful titles like "Adding Milk to DNA," "The word 'blood' is mentioned 109 times in Macbeth," and "Lego Hair." One song, however, that stands out particularly is "The anomaly" - a perfect title for this little obscure gem - the dance track, if you will. It has some drum machine beats going on and is one of the few places where we find guitars that are more upbeat rather than crushing. But this little respite from the chaos doesn't last long; the song's a mere thirty-five seconds long. As for the length of the songs, it ranges anywhere from four seconds, as seen on the lovely "Man-eater," to over three minutes on "An angel collapsing."

As the disc progresses, the songs are definitely longer and more elaborate. Some of the finest tracks are the adventurous and urgent "5 months," "Green eyed angel in my dream" with its intricate drums and memorable guitar riffs, as well as "The spatio-temporal aspect," which starts off sounding far away and then ends with a surprising piano coda, and "Asterisk and Obelisk" with all its hellish fury. The feral "Drink Me" lets up for a bit with a hardcore breakdown, only to return to its frightening tempo and ultimately ending with a tortured howl.

And this album is timely, as Asterisk* has been on an indefinite hiatus since 2002 and don't know if they'll ever make another record. Some old news on their site (crash.to/grindondotcom) supports this lack of certainty pertaining to the years to come, where they declare they're "still in hibernation, sleeping the winter and all possible future away" (Three One G).