Review: Mahavatar “Go With the No!” CD

This unique New York outfit is led by a female duo - Jamaican guitarist Karla Williams and Israeli vocalist Lizza Hayson - who enlist the help of studio musicians to round out the lineup on this, their debut full-length. I haven't heard any of their material since the 2000 demo, which I was pretty interested by, and thankfully this record is along those same lines (including a few re-recorded tracks from both the 2000 demo and 2003 demos). The basic framework for this material is midpaced melodic metal that's fairly simplistic in its use of heavy power chords and melodic lead lines, but they definitely come off with their own sound in the end. Part of this is due to Hayson's interesting vocals, which range from ominous singing to strained shouts or borderline death metal styles (very scarcely); while Williams unloads some impressive lead playing (nothing technical, mind you, but the solos are very nicely thought out against the music and really carry an emotional bent). At times some rhythmic vocal patterns blend with chunkier grooves to lend a very subtle modern metal vibe to the material, but then you've got songs like "Raw" that contrast that with great clean/acoustic guitars and really nice singing... so this isn't derivative material at all, and anyone who would make such claims based on some of the more tangible elements would be quite remiss in their judgments. Opener "Cult" has some of the quirkiest melodic lines and discordant chords, which really opens the disc on an awesome note (the chord progression backing the chorus is fuckin' great). Later "Open Your Minds" has some fucking amazing vocal harmonies and nice interplay between vocal styles, with "The Time Has Come" topping six minutes and carrying along at a slower pace that's a little more openly aggressive than much of the work (contrasted with spoken vocals and softer clean passages). "Anger" even opens with some funky basslines and sparse guitar melodies, eventually opening into a slightly more rocked out passage - definitely a little different than a lot of the other influences at work. Some of the guitar textures and effects used in "Psychos" and "Deep Cobble" aren't my thing, and sort of have more of an experimental or atmospheric side, but they don't really hinder the songs too much, so the band pulls through in the end. The recording is pretty damn good. Everything is nice and smooth with an effective mix that balances the elements well. The basslines sit behind the guitars and thicken things up while the percussion is fairly subdued, and the vocals rest barely out in front at times when there's a lot of layering involved. The guitars could stand to be a little louder and the rhythms brighter (they're just a touch raw at times), but I'm not complaining as I like the recording for the most part. And fuck, the solos sound so god damn good... I love that aspect of the record, truly. If they ever end up in a situation where they have a hefty budget at hand I bet they'll come away with a ridiculously awesome sounding record, as they seem to know their way around - even their first demo sounded quite solid for its circumstances. The layout uses lots of fiery colors and patterns with astral sorts of movements and textures and such, which kind of ties in with some of the abstract lyrical passages. The songs tend to explore a few commentaries on society and humanity at large, with others more concerned with internal struggles and consciousness and whatnot. It often comes across as rather strange, though. I kind of think the lyrics are a weak link compared to how interesting the music is, not ideologically, just in the manner of phrasing and whatnot... they're just not as intriguing is all. I really like this band, though. I'm honestly not surprised that they've been fairly overlooked throughout the years because there's just no justice in this world and people are narrowminded idiots when it comes to a lot of things. But they deserve more attention and I hope they reach that level, because there's a shitload of potential here that really ought to be tapped.