It's always been a struggle for me, trying to find new bands with a distinctive sounds who aren't boring. Today's song of choice, is from a band who I still haven't really made my mind up on, they are like Golden Syrup (similar to maple syrup for you transatlantic readers). They are fairly heavy and bring a thick and rich sound to the musical table but after a couple of mouthfuls you get a bit full. Devil Sold His Soul (DSHS) are a ambient metalcore band from England. Metalcore is a much disputed genre, as a new kid on the block, like nu metal before it, it is therefore disliked as soon as it becomes popular. I'm gonna have write something about metalcore..... but that's for another time.
Anyway, these guys have released 5 albums and today's musical trenche, Clouds, is from their first album- Darkness Prevails. Now I'm not gonna say go and buy this instantly (surely an instant musical indictment) as the album, while good, has me confused as to where I stand. I certainly don't hate them but I'm not sure if their album long song concept is really something I can gel with. What I mean is that each song is designed, on the album, to flow into the next one, like some sort of conjoined twin, and create a musical journey throughout a sordid landscape similar to the feel of the film The Hills Have Eyes (Oh dear god the remakes are piss poor). A stark dramatic and very forlorn landscape is conjured populated with dead tress and cracked earth.
While the imagery is incredibly effective it does bring about the question, do I really want to be listening to something this bleak for about 20 minutes? At this particular point in time, no...
Perhaps it would be easier if I reviewed this song.
Right, the song Clouds opens with this band's trademark simply chord rhythms, a rich sample and guitar led affair which culminates in the harsh strained introduction of the vocalist. It's fantastically emotional but after a minute or so of atmospheric guitar work the music drops behind and the break comes, whose soft guitar part effervesces sweetly forward to suddenly be cast aside in storm of white water guitar pulsing.
The minute the guitars change to a different rhythm the audience is led to believe that things are suddenly going to burst away from the pattern and an absolutely monumental shit storm is about to hit us, however I am still faced with another wall of pounding guitars, not necessarily in a good way.
So is it all bad then? Not necessarily, I'd definitely put them on at 4 am when I'm just drinking coffee with my mates, but would it build me up to being in a frenzy of mosh filled enjoyment? No.
So really this band truly is an atmospheric band, they want to keep people in a certain emotional state of metallic tranquility. My major praise is the well integrated samples. I feel, personally, when metal bands integrate samples into their music, they lose a certain energy. They seem to either use them to play what would otherwise be the guitar riff (In Flames) of they use it to basically provide irritating incidental bollocks (Enter Shite-kari).
The samples are effectively used to integrate the soundscape with the listener and to possibly try and take some of the edge off the guitars, allowing it to remain a atmospheric band. My major criticism is that the distinct lack of rhythmic and melodic dynamism leads to a quickly tiring musical experience.
So where are we? We have a band here that is very atmospheric and can combine a fantastic set of samples with rich and solid wall of sound. They cannot however carefully construct a riff that would bring these together and help move the song forward. In the end this band, whilst very good, lacks a drive, a motion. The songs while able to create a fantastic image fail to let that image progress and grow. Thus without a dynamic or a lyrical or a tempo or even a rhythmic journey we are left stranded in this desert waiting for someone to pick us up.
Listen to it, absorb it but don't dwell otherwise you may become lobotomised....
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