(written by Islander)
We would like to introduce you to the “dissoblack and death metal” band Wince and Frisson. They are a duo, one in North Carolina and one in New Jersey. Their names are not “Wince” and “Frisson”. One of them goes by Triumvir Kaleido, and the other is Steve Wiener, who is the artist behind Am I in Trouble? and a member of Eveale, Negative Bliss, and Ashenheart.
Triumvir is the group’s songwriter, guitarist, bassist, and vocalist. Triumvir also creates the band’s artwork and is responsible for the animated music video we’re about to share with you for their first single, “Kärrhäxan“. Steve programmed the drums and produced, mixed, and mastered the music you’re about to hear.
But to briefly go back to the band’s name, “wince” is a word that describes “a slight involuntary grimace or shrinking movement of the body out of or in anticipation of pain or distress” (as a visitor to NCS, you probably knew that already), while “frisson” refers to “a sudden strong feeling of excitement or fear, a thrill”. Why did they pick this name? You’re about to get some clues.
One clue is that Wince and Frisson have said they drew inspiration from bands such as Gorguts, Imperial Triumphant, Portal, and Knoll, while favoring “the brevity and to-the-point song structure found in powerviolence and grindcore acts such as Nails and Rotten Sound.” “Kärrhäxan” provides an even more tangible glimpse of what they’re getting up to.
The video is a hell of a thing to watch. With striking animated imagery and words, it narrates the tale of a vile witch inducing a young pregnant woman to ingratiate herself with “holy men” by aborting her child — with truly hellish results.
The music violently roils and sears while the bass thunders and the drums blast, together creating a wild maelstrom of savage madness — indeed a frisson of diabolical fury. Above this hurricane of evil black-metal dissonance Triumvir further fanatically scalds the listener with blistering screams.
The song allows no room for anyone to breathe from beginning to end, though the duo do segment the convulsive layers of searing and thoroughly demented fretwork with furious jolts, nasty jabs, bursts of booming percussion, and even more larynx-lacerating vocal mania.
As the band say, it’s: “Anti-filler, to-the-point, blackened rage. No solos, no soundscapes, just unbridled aggression.”
Guitars, bass, and vocals were recorded at Second Rise Studios. Drums were programmed at The Hot Dog Factory.
“Kärrhäxan” will be officially released as a single on February 27th. And we’re told that Wince and Frisson’s debut album Tumult will be coming soon.
FOLLOW WINCE AND FRISON:
Ampwall – https://ampwall.com/a/winceandfrisson
Bandcamp – https://winceandfrisson.bandcamp.com
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/winceandfrisson
Bluesky – https://bsky.app/profile/winceandfrisson.bsky.social
