Going through a batch of discs that had turned up from Poland I noticed the somewhat tripped out cover for this one, the fact that the band name was impossible to read (but not in standard bm iconography) and that the pr sheet mentioned Dodheimsgard, Ved Buens Ende and Hawkwind amongst others. Perfect, I thought as throwing it on my review pile to be digested later. As I got back to it and read further I noted that this may also appeal to fans of Stanley Kubrick and Viennese Actionism and Discordianism too. Oh well then shall I end up tied to a chair with needles in my eyes exposed to the old Ludovico technique whilst being forced to watch people having sex amongst animal carcasses and guts? Not so sure I am ready for this particular trip then. Oh well best press play and see just what the hell happens.
Back tracking slightly these Poles are said to be stubborn post-black metallers which is a great description on a PR blog that for once does not go for hyperbole but gets things spot on. The group apparently started off playing black n’ roll before going in this rather strange direction and although having been active since 2001 have only released two demos prior to this their debut album.
The track titles are as obtuse as the music itself and we start off at ‘White Claudia.’ You can instantly hear from the bass groove and the skewed helter-skelter manic instrumentation comparisons to VBE and once singer Zgred gets in on the act a deranged vocals style not a million miles from Kvohst era Supervillain Outcast. There are lots of strange noises and pulses as he groans and moans away and what sounds like odd chirping noises, although no carbon copy I guess this is close to the Hawkwind comparison so within a few minutes they have hit the style of all three bands they proposed to and with that in mind its a very heady place to be. Still thankfully nobody has thrown cow intestines at me. ’12 Sycamores’ helicopter like the seeds falling down to earth spinning around in a haywire fashion as the drums go for a frenzied flurry, vocals have an avant psychedelic feel to them akin to Brit eccentrics like Poisoned Electrick Head, by now I am wondering just what the fuck this lot are on. The title track is ace, starting with a death belch and grooving away all over the place, completely madcap and even feeling like a cartoon on acid as it races away like a mix of crazed squat punk, black filth and jazz fusion. I think I just got slapped round the face with a very bloody steak. I’m not quite sure about the lyrics but it does actually sound like “oh god my face” so perhaps the singer got a slap too.
Demonic voices and strident thus hit us up on ‘Poison In My Food’ it sounds as though singer and band are possessed and there is even a spot of eerie whistling going on, one thing that is evident is that the musicians can really play and do so in a style that now resembles the weirdness of Jim Plotkin’s oeuvre and bands like the beguiling Behold The Arctopus. Everyone is going to find something a bit different here. Each song flows into the next one in an equally over the top fashion as though the band are on a race that they simply cannot lose. The one complaint is that in doing so the album is a bit on the short side with just seven proper numbers running at just over the half hour. I seriously wanted a couple more numbers bringing this up to the 3/4 hour mark but guess that what with the time involved in actually getting this debut out there (and it is out there) you just cannot rush genius. The full effects of whatever they have taken are definitely kicking in (pun intended) on ‘Don’t Eat My Legs’ one of the craziest songs heard in a long time but we lurch and stumble back into action for ‘Origin’ which throws a cohesive melee of styles into the blender and throws the switch spinning them at lunatic speed. Finally we get to the self explanatory song title ‘Bill skins Fifth’ which constructs musical origami around some nice VBE etched vocal croons, as the music goes for one last dose of craziness and hurdles towards the end of the album with a mental last burst.
This is an album where there is absolutely going to be no middle ground, you will either love it or be trying to defenestrate yourself before the first track is over, in a desperate attempt to escape from the wild noise. I think the mark I have given clearly reflects what I think and I really hope that Iblis are not going to rest on their laurels and get something together and follow this up quickly. Drug donations are surely accepted at the link below.
(8/10 Pete Woods)
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