This album from the French one-man Death Metaller Manipulator consists of four tracks, followed by a 2009 demo “Unearthed”. It sounds a bit of a patch-up but it lasts the length of a full album and the underlying philosophy is the same: death, decay and void-worshipping hatred and contempt.
After what seems an age to get going, 1 ½ minutes in fact, “Voidbound” heads into a muddy, all-out thrashing assault. This is more or less how it continues. In amongst the crash-bang-wallop, and peering out of the background fog come the indistinct deathly utterances of Mr Manipulator. It slows down momentarily into Doom. The sounds of industrial processes and chaos resound as the anguished cries and dark intensity flood the scene. The odd guitar riff reinforces the idea that this is all from the depths of hell but it’s all rather repetitive. Mr Manipulator seems to be having a jolly nice time trying to make it as nasty as possible, but for me it wasn’t quite authentic. I found “Voidbound” somewhat contrived and felt that for all its darkness and intensity it never got out of the starting blocks. It’s as if Mr Manipulator is trying too hard. “Voidbound” ends with a cover of Darkthrone’s “Cromlech”. Even this was anonymous and character-free. Extreme Metal mixes again with unholy echoes. There’s a rather clumsy break and it all leads finally to industrial noises of horror.
It was only on the bonus 8 track demo “Unearthed” that I found something to appreciate. “Conclusive Ablaze” is dark and threatening but this time there’s something to hang on to, in contrast to the earlier extremity sans cause. The throaty enhancements from the vocalist work well. “I Am Lie” features a welcome piece of melancholic guitar work while “Of Witch and Wood” is proper Death Metal of the kind which drives through walls. Punishing drum work, grim and fast delivery with a bit of colour can found on the last two tracks “Pyre No Fire” and “Lost in the Woods”. Where “Voidbound” seemed to be making an effort to be atmospheric and came up short, the less produced “Unearthed” was much more natural and varied in its Death Metal exploration of the unpleasant.
Mr Manipulator’s fellow Frenchman Eric Cantona once said “every artist tries to find spontaneity in what they do: the quest for spontaneity is beautiful”. I could only find spontaneity in the bonus section of this work. It’s all very well having a philosophy of grimness and general misanthropy, but as a musician it’s important to smother and strike the listener down. For all its intensity, “Voidbound” did nothing of the sort.
(3.5 / 10 Andrew Doherty)
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