I was sent a CD by this Luxembourg band several years ago, but I can't remember what it sounded like, nor can I find the review in my backup files here at home. I actually like what I'm hearing here from a songwriting standpoint, though. It's a shame they don't have the recording quality that their labelmates in Bora scored, as the production is the only thing holding this material back in my eyes, but despite an overly thin set of tones that lacks the power necessary to properly communicate this music, I can at least tell that the songwriting has a lot to offer. It's basically a weird blend of metalcore and caustic indie rock that's definitely got an artistic vision that's trying to be a little different from the norm without totally abandoning some of the tried and true attributes of either genre - be it chunky rhythms and discordant textures or noisy riffing and jangly chords that lighten up on the distortion. The mix of singing and screaming is pretty effective, though the singing's not totally comfortable yet. But the screaming's solid, and I actually enjoy the singing, I just think it needs to come closer in against the music to fit better and not sound occasionally awkward. Some of the dissonant textures contrasted by singing and screaming in "What We Are" are fucking awesome, and that's definitely my favorite track overall. Some of the pull-off riffs and quirky little angular influences in "What We Have Become" are indicative of one of the confusing aspects of the disc, with the weird synths (I think?) in the title track following suit; but "The Orient" is a really interesting piece with spoken vocals and distant layers of singing and screaming over a forcefully pulsing rhythm that repeats efficiently and kind of makes for an almost cinematic sort of feel at times. Similarly, "Going to Paris" opens with lulled singing and clean guitars over programmed percussion before spoken vocals return, making for a little more of a restrained and consistent composition that's strangely memorable and creative. The guy's actually got a really unique singing/speaking voice, so if he can iron out the rough patches he'll be a true benefit to the band. "Sachalin With a Smile" makes better use of the keyboards (which are rarely used, or at least rarely recognizable, throughout the album), and after some chaotic shifts starts to lock in and make a well conceived build through melody to vicious heaviness with a darker atmosphere that could yield incredible results if they follow that road more often in the future. More specifically regarding the sound quality, it's just way too thin. There's a significant gap in the core of the mix that lets drums have a little too much space because the bass tone is overly defined and actually lacks low-end. The drums and vocals actually sound pretty good (the drums needs a little more balance though), but the bass needs to fill the space better with a thicker presence, and the guitars also need more volume and more force/density. They're really close on the guitar tone, something just sounds off with the mix, and they're losing some force there. If they can reach a better equilibrium between all of the individual pieces I think they'll be okay as is, but it's a bit of a shame to some degree, because a handful of these songs would really blow me away with a better recording. Visually I think most of the text looks too plain, but the imagery is great and I really dig the color scheme as well. Even though the record is sort of presented like a concept of sorts, the lyrics stand on their own individually, generally tied together only in general tone, with the last track kind of summing up the overall feel the best: "If we keep on searching we'll be finding the reasons to wake and face this grey everyday, The winds will be turning to one day blow your way - so to the boy that walks the city streets of a desperate town: We all walk with that hope in our hearts that this is not all that we will ever know and if we gave all we had we will get what we came for." Not too shabby. A curious release that I know for a fact I'd have been more a fan of were the recording better. I'd really like to see these guys start getting a little more attention, because this is strong material, and with the right opportunities I think this band could really do something amazing. I'll really be hoping for the best for ?em, so... maybe next time they'll really floor me.
[Kablio Muzika]
Running time - 31:10, Tracks: 9
[Notable tracks: What We Are, The Orient, Going to Paris]
Kablio Muzika - http://www.kablys.hardcore.lt
