Brazen "As Floods Decrease" CD
[Snuff]
This is an older EP from Switzerland's Brazen, recorded back in 2000. This band is fucking awesome, and Snuff Records rocks, so I'm reviewing this gem to spread the word, albeit a bit late. This band plays a unique blend of styles that I would probably say revolves around aggressive indie rock if forced at gunpoint to pin it down, but it's definitely more than that. They blend clean guitars and singing vocals with screaming and frantic distorted attacks, but they never really abandon their sense of melody, nor their awareness of structure. Most of the songs are midpaced but very forceful thanks to some incredibly powerful drumming and a lot of subtly intricate layering. The guitars, bass, and drums work together without simply playing the same thing as one another, and that coupled with the dynamic shifts really helps emphasize the emotional nature of the material. Imagine Burst, Neurosis, and Fugazi getting mixed up in a tornado... the result would probably be something along these lines. I really like the production. It's not polished, but it is strong. It's natural. The drums are warm, the bass dense, the guitars are bright and textured but still rough, and the vocals slide right into the center within the music. Nice. The layout is simple yet awesome. Everything is printed on matte gray paper, the fonts are very crisp and bold, etc. The booklet is what really gets interesting, though. There's a square diecut out of the center with the band logo and album title printed above/below it, and showing through is an illustration of a face printed on a loose sheet of vellum inside. Showing through the vellum are some of the lyrics, printed on another loose sheet of matte gray paper that rests underneath the layer of vellum. The lyrics are included as one lengthy passage with no separations, and the content is pretty interesting. "...binding my hands driving me to inland desert walls and crumbling roofs last call they just built their laws and rules on nothing blinding lights and sewed mouths are winning time to look around right against them sharpening your words you just ran out of time..." I don't know what these guys are up to now, but they're a very creative band that has yet to let me down. I hope they're working on something new and even more incredible than what I've heard thus far. In the meantime, pick this one up while you still can. (8/10)
Running time - 23:07, Tracks: 5
[Notable tracks: The Opening Curse, In Ruins, Throats to Hear]
Snuff Records - http://www.snuffrecords.com

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