The Hag "Depredations" CD
[self-released]
After a minute or two of quiet ambient sounds this strange Polish project opens up with what sounds like programmed percussion, thudding bass, and ethereal synths backing spoken vocals, eventually bringing in distorted guitars but never really exploding forth or anything like that. I'm not sure how I feel about this. I don't like the sound of the drums at all, they sound totally programmed but there are lots of falters, so I assume they're played live. The bass is also thin and plunky, and the guitars are a little rigid with midrange, so they sound unnatural and get pushed back in the mix. I also don't like the vocals, they sound spoken all the time, even when they seem to be going for more of a rough singing or sneering delivery, so they're not convincing. Aside from the significant recording issues, the songwriting is really jumbled. I guess you could call it experimental avant-garde metal or something, but there are lots of weird quirks like Middle Eastern sounding riffs or chunky rhythmic chord progressions and spacey synths... I don't know. Some of the colder riffing is really cool, but the vocals really are awful, and so the end result sort of starts coming off as an ambitiously creative demo that points to some good ideas, but doesn't develop anything enough to leave a mark. "The Extreme Unction" follows more of a linear structure that hints at black metal meets doom and brings in some aggressive screaming vocals, and that style is far more effective than most of the other content here (the synths do bog it down, though). "Maladjusted", however, is simply an awful song. It revolves around all of this demo's weaknesses: Boring chunky chords, random electronic noodling, weak spoken vocals, and so forth. The CD-R comes in a slim jewel case with a xeroxed insert on bright green paper, most of which is straight text. The tracks that have lyrics are surprisingly involved, with lengthy passages that touch on some interesting moments for sure: "There's really nothing in this world I would crave for, Fears and my nightmares are becoming real more and more, Every glance I take is of pure winter, And every little rose is black in this heart of mine..." A part of me wonders if a really professional recording could save this material. At its highest points I could see this stuff fitting in with the artists on the Code666 label or something like that, as I think stronger compositions like "The Extreme Unction" could sound rather convincing under a good, clear recording. There's a possibility that the same would be true for most of the other songs as well, but they'd really need to step up the production values, and I think a lot of work would need to be placed into a more effective vocal delivery as well. I'm being hard on this, but hopefully the band will keep at it so that they can fully realize their vision. They do have some good ideas in progress. (3/10)
Running time - 25:51, Tracks: 7
[Notable tracks: The Extreme Unction, Murmurs of Aura]
The Hag - http://www.thehag.tk

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