THE SYNN REPORT, PART 15: LUDICRA

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Jul 302011
 

(NCS writer Andy Synn devotes his 15th SYNN REPORT to the late, lamented Ludicra, who called it quits earlier this week.)

Loyal readers, it is with a heavy heart that I compose this edition of The Synn Report. The recent untimely demise of progressive black metal act Ludicra has prompted me to push back the article I was writing in favour of a tribute to a band that ended its career all too abruptly, brimming as it was with future promise and potential.

Ostensibly a black metal act, although one difficult to pin down precisely, between their inception in 1998 and their recent lamentable dissolution, the San Franciscan group provided four albums (and one EP) of scintillating riffage and caustic vocals, laden with progressive tendencies and a thrashy, punky energy. Laurie Sue Shanaman’s distinctive screams are wounded howls of passion with a restrained berserker frenzy, using her ethereal cleans to add an extra dimension of morose expression, ably supported by the harsh backing vocals of Christy Cather, a skilled and impressive guitarist, responsible for composing the group’s jagged riffs along with her partners in crime John Cobbett and Ross Sewage.

Unlike the icy, bleak naturism of many of their peers, the crisp, cold exterior to Ludicra’s sound evokes memories not of ice but of cold concrete; stark monoliths silhouetted against a dying sun, empty wind-swept streets once bustling with activity but now devoid of life – these are the images which come to mind when listening to Ludicra’s “urban sprawl” black metal, matching breathtaking beauty with cold and chilling clarity. (more after the jump, including tracks from each of Ludicra’s releases . . .) Continue reading »

THE SYNN REPORT, PART 14: INSISION

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Jul 212011
 

(NSC scribe Andy Synn turns in his 14th SYNN REPORT with a focus on the discography of Sweden’s Insision.)

The grotesque, mutated beast calling itself Insision was expelled from the womb in 1997, an unnatural combination of blood-soaked Floridian death metal violence and Swedish death metal malevolence. Since that time they have unleashed upon the world one EP, 3 albums, and numerous split releases with like-minded deviants. Though perhaps some of you may have heard their name due to the presence of renowned metal author Daniel Ekeroth on bass (although he has recently departed due to his hectic publishing schedule), the group have also shared stages with death metal royalty like Suffocation and Vader, tightening their vicious live show through a hectic and extensive touring schedule, leaving a trail of devastation across Europe.

Yet for all their straightforward, blood-drenched barbarism, to dismiss the group as merely another in a long line of Cro-Magnon misanthropists, eager to express their own bile and misogyny through the medium of down-tuned  brutality, is to miss out on the subtle, insidious growth the band have demonstrated since their inception. From their early years where an unfocussed, yet unrelenting attack was the key to their sound’s success – giving their audience little time to think and inspiring a visceral, instinctive reaction from their willing victims – the band have steadily developed their technical prowess and compositional skills, constructing an ever more warped and twisted vision of angular, incorporeal guitar work and bone-cracking drumming.

Their sound evokes ungodly visions of towering monoliths of mangled flesh and distorted bone sculptures, their progression from thuggish nihilism, through psychotic, serial killer chic, to the possessed ravings of their current, demonic incarnation evident in the channelling torrents of iniquity and incoherent horror which flow through and tie together each album they have regurgitated from the depths of their decaying souls.  (more after the jump, including sample songs with which to wreck your ears . . .) Continue reading »

THE SYNN REPORT, PART 13: ELITE

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Jul 062011
 

(Andy Synn is back with his lucky 13th SYNN REPORT.)

Norway’s Elite have a lot to live up to. With their chosen moniker, they have set themselves up to be seen either as foolish pretenders to black metal’s mystic might or as battle-hardened warriors whose very skill with their chosen muse makes them truly worthy of the title they have chosen.

Just as challenging, no matter their own prowess, is the fact that their sound treads ground already bloodied by the storms and sacrifices of some of their country’s greatest warriors. This battlefield was once walked by giants such as Immortal, Enslaved and Emperor, each of whom left blood and chaos in their wake, before moving on to new worlds to sow their seeds yet further.

For Elite, however, there is no thought of following Immortal into the halls of myth and legend, no desire to lose themselves in eldritch contemplation and progression like their forebears Enslaved, no sense of legacy and majesty that might make them challenge the rule of the Emperor. No, Elite are happy only on the battlefield itself, running rampant over their opponents and challenging the mightiest of warriors to single combat, for death or for glory.

Where their forebears have abandoned the battle, moving further away from the bleakness and blackness of occult warfare, Elite remain yet upon the field, collecting the weapons and the bones of the fallen, paying tribute to the lost and the damned, honing their skills over and over to perfection. Their ambition is not to carve out a kingdom for themselves as their ancestors did, but to prove themselves in combat, to face all challengers and crush them with metallic power and primal ferocity. This is not a lack of ambition, merely a different form of it, a form where bloodshed and brotherhood remain more important than majesty and acclaim. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

THE SYNN REPORT, PART 12: THE WARRIORS

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Jun 082011
 

Recommended for fans of: Pro-Pain, Downset, Sick of It All

The last edition of THE SYNN REPORT was a real mental workout for me; listening to that much horrific, hellish noise, over and over again for such an extended period left me completely and utterly drained. So, for this edition I sought out something more positive and uplifting that, without sacrificing aggression or integrity, would provide me with the perfect antidote to the toxic poisons I had ingested, which is why this iteration of THE SYNN REPORT is going to cover fiery Metallic Hardcore quintet The Warriors.

This Californian 5-piece have to date produced 4 albums (the latest See How You Are having only recently been released this year) of hardcore bite and vicious metallic chuggery, blended with funky, elastic grooves and delivered with a rolling, rock n’ roll swagger.

The harsh, intense vocals of Marshall Lichtenwaldt are perhaps the thing which most people will pay attention to, his distinctive, throat-rending snarls and rapid-fire delivery providing an obvious talking point to any lovers of the genre. Yet the musical abilities of the rest of the band are just as important, the guitars heavy yet far from primitive, the drums taut and punchy, and the bass agile and flowing. Continue reading »

THE SYNN REPORT, PART 11: THE AXIS OF PERDITION

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May 182011
 

(NCS writer Andy Synn turns in his latest SYNN REPORT. It’s safe to say this is the most unclean of Andy’s reports yet.)

Decadent filth-mongers The Axis Of Perdition have been on an unholy mission for many years now, spreading their terrible gospel of sickness and depravity to all those disturbed or lost enough to listen to their ravings. Over the course of 3 albums and 1 EP (with a new record, Tenements, imminent) they have mutated and corrupted the minds and souls of their listeners, displaying a nauseating growth and spread which is as fascinating as it is disgusting.

Comparison to fellow British urban blackened grinders Anaal Nathrakh is inevitable (particularly comparing early AN and early Axis…) but whereas Anaal Nathrakh epitomise the superiority of the urban predator, perfectly evolved for maximum carnage, The Axis Of Perdition occupy the opposite end of the spectrum, the imperfection of urban decay, the collapse of progress into inevitable decline and pestilent rot.

The band also dabble and delve into occult themes and sickening blasphemies, stealing widely from Lovecraftian lore and the modern day computerised horror of the Silent Hill mythos to express their deep-seated antipathy towards the surface of things, beneath which lies another world of indescribable repugnance and shit-covered, drooling madness. (more after the jump, including disgusting songs from each of the band’s albums . . .) Continue reading »

THE SYNN REPORT: SPECIAL COVERS EDITION

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Apr 292011
 

(I swear this was a coincidence. I wrote a post that went up earlier today on metal covers based on a single by Anachronaeon we received yesterday, and then our UK contributor Andy Synn delivered this special edition of THE SYNN REPORT about . . . covers. This is the kind of occurrence that sends me back to the dictionary once again to figure out the difference between synchronicity and serenditpity. Or maybe it’s both.)

Covers are a strange breed of song – they’re the equivalent of a parallel universe, an alternate history, a What If? Comic, an adaptation of your favourite book starring an unexpected actor, a Shakespeare play set in an average American high school…

Seriously though, they have a huge amount of potential, both to be intriguingly inventive and woefully horrendous. Their success (or lack thereof) depends on many factors, but mainly on the song-choice itself – is it a natural fit for the band? Do they have the intelligence to re-work it in a distinctive manner? Or is it simply enough to tear through it in their own inimitable style, making few changes, but relying on sheer power to see them through?

I have chosen 15 artists who have produced some of my own personal favourite covers, showcasing a variety of approaches, some fully traditional takes on the original, others totally reworked variations. If there’s one thing that these covers show however, it is the subtle threads that inter-link all different sub-genres of rock and metal, which allow bands to re-work them organically. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

THE SYNN REPORT, PART 10: BECOMING THE ARCHETYPE

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Apr 182011
 

(Andy Synn is back with another SYNN REPORT. Today, the subject is Becoming the Archetype, and Andy discusses the band’s discography leading up to the newest release, Celestial Completion. Tomorrow we’ll have Andy’s review of that album.)

Becoming The Archetype, the four piece Progressive death metal band from Georgia, have gone through numerous line-up changes in their time, yet still consistently deliver vibrant, distinctive albums of stunning musicianship and complex compositions based around a core of crunching, shredding guitar, intricate, growling bass-lines, subtle yet dominating drums and the terrifying, lion-like roar of front-man Jason Wisdom.

Weaving in and out of this maelstrom of metallic might are the extra (yet never superfluous) elements which serve to add yet another string to the band’s progressive bow. Complex keys, piano and organ, transcendent clean singing, buzzing electronics, all tied together in a convoluted, genre-ambiguous package that at all times bleeds passion and sincerity.

With four albums under their belt so far, the band have carved themselves out a distinctive and instantly recognisable identity, despite the sheer variety of styles and approaches they employ. Terminate Damnation was their original exploration of controlled chaos and violent emotion, The Physics Of Fire” a labyrinthine mosaic of enigmatic musicianship and progressive drive, Dichotomy a cryptic synthesis of the band’s history and renewed aggression, with Celestial Completion a tangled yet profound fusion of old and new influences which opens up new doors for the band’s future.  (more after the jump, including sample songs from each album . . .) Continue reading »

THE SYNN REPORT, PART 9: OCEANS OF SADNESS

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Mar 222011
 

NCS contributor Andy Synn returns with yet another retrospective. This time the subject is Oceans of Sadness from Belgium.

Unfortunately, this edition of The Synn Report is a posthumous one, as Oceans Of Sadness recently announced their split. I had originally intended to write something about this band at a later date, hoping that they would have a new release by then as their last album (their sixth) was released way back in 2008.

Sadly, these Belgian visionaries have made the decision to part ways, leaving behind them six full-length albums of darkly romantic, proggy metal whose lack of boundaries makes their sound both fascinating and at the same time difficult to classify in its entirety. As such I’m giving each album its own recommendation separately this time around. Quick warning: the band relies primarily on clean vocals accented by some death metal growls and black metal shrieks, not the other way around!

To my mind there are (broadly speaking) two forms of progressive music, linear progressive music and spherical progressive music. The former usually involves bands moving in a linear direction away from their original forms, growing and evolving along the way, often to a point where their sound and style are totally different from that of their earliest releases. The latter involves a band carving out a sound with a large potential scope based on a central point of consistency – this allows the band to experiment within this sphere (which varies in size and scope depending upon genre limitations, technical and compositional skills, etc) whilst maintaining a core sound.

Neither of these forms is entirely mutually exclusive, as bands who have mined their sonic sphere of all possibilities can be seen to break out onto a linear path in response, just as bands who have made a career out of linear growth can eventually find a sphere to inhabit in which they are most happy to exist. (more after the jump, including songs . . .) Continue reading »

THE SYNN REPORT, PART 8: THE MONOLITH DEATHCULT

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Mar 162011
 

Yesterday we posted an interview with Michiel Dekker of The Monolith Deathcult. Today, our UK contributor Andy Synn, who apparently writes as fast as a peregrine falcon can fly, prepared this companion retrospective in his latest edition of THE SYNN REPORT.

In order to keep up a bit of consistency on the site, I’ve shuffled The Monolith Deathcult up a few notches in my list of bands, so as to best take advantage of Islander’s interview with band main-man Michiel Dekker. Rest assured that the next Synn Report will finally get me back on track with the band I have been wanting to address for several weeks now!

Stormtroopers of avant-garde death metal, The Monolith Deathcult originally formed in 2002 under the moniker “Monolith” before switching to the far more verbose and distinctive title they operate under today. Fusing brutal, technical death metal with grandiose symphonic sounds, industrial strength electronics and a historically focussed lyrical bent, the band have thus far crafted three albums of devastating yet artistically complex death metal.

Eschewing the “more for more’s sake” attitude of speed and technicality so prevalent in death metal, TMDC chose to step sideways, incorporating and exploring new ideas, more twisted song-structures and an array of extraneous instrumentation into their sonic sculptures. Less of a “progressive” band than they are an “experimental” one, TMDC’s main goal appears to be the stretching of traditional death metal boundaries to, and perhaps even beyond, their breaking point. (more after the jump, including music . . .) Continue reading »

THE SYNN REPORT, PART 7: MYRKSKOG

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Mar 072011
 

(NCS contributor Andy Synn joins us again with a look back at the music of Myrkskog.)

Hello ladies and gents. This edition of The Synn Report is going to be somewhat shorter than usual as I’ve also been focussing on getting one or two reviews done as well. Not to worry though, the next edition will once again be a lengthy and comprehensive retrospective (truth be told, next week’s band was originally intended to be this week’s band, but their discography is longer and a lot harder to define than this one, so I’ve gone for the easy option this time around!).

Forming in 1993 in Drammen Norway, Myrkskog fuse rampaging death metal brutality with the bleakness of black metal and the harsh clamour of industrial elements into a focussed, unstoppable killing machine. Their first release, Deathmachine, was an intense powerhouse of wall-of-sound industrial noise, blackened melody and death metal power. Second album Superior Massacre saw the band pursuing a more death metal oriented direction (partially due to the departure of guitarist Savant M) which paid tribute to the Floridian death metal sound, albeit still incorporating some darker, black metal tones and underlying, inhuman synths.

The band’s notoriety is partially down to their connection to Zyklon, the post-Emperor project of Samoth and Trym, effectively a continuation of Myrkskog’s musical legacy and featuring both Destruchthor and Secthdamon of Myrkskog. Early guitarist Savant M also went on to form the militant industrial black metal outfit Disiplin after playing his part in the recording of Deathmachine. However, you may or may not be aware of the members’ more high-profile positions in some legendary extreme metal acts, as drummer Secthdamon played bass for Emperor on their recent reunion dates and guitarist Destructhor has served time as a touring guitarist for 1349 and is currently a permanent member of Morbid Angel. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

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