I listened to a sample of what was a three minute extract of “Lost Fulcrum”, the first track on this album. I was attracted to the deep and chunky six string bass sound and wanted to hear more. Human Beansauce is the project of a gentleman from the US called Jim Hildebrandt and aside from his propensity for the bass guitar, the little booklet which came with the album displays Mr Beansauce’s passion for interesting and disturbing artwork.
This guy certainly keeps us on our toes. After the death metal style opener, complete with popping programmed drums, we move onto even growlier territory. I like the fact that the core is the bass, and vocals are used sparingly. There’s plenty in these progressive jazz-style patterns without the need for superfluous vocals. That aggressive bass gives it an edgy and dangerous feel. I found myself being carried away by the excitement of this hypnotic guitar work, and was disappointed when “Recapture” suddenly stopped. It could have gone on. It’s as if this was a demo serving as an experimental prequel to something else. The change of ambiance which came with “Breathe Low” was initially unwelcome. Maybe this was just me being taken out of my comfort zone. This was nothing, as a minute into “Breathe Low”, there’s a break and complete change of direction as it all slows down and there’s a moody quiet passage which has a tinge of Opeth about it. Mobile djentiness returns. The technical bass work makes for compelling listening. The tactic seems to be to ignore the idea of crescendo or build-up but instead to lurch from passage to passage. It’s hard to know what’s coming next. The track ends with another mobile section of technical wizardry. It’s gripping and loops its way round you but again ends in mid-stream. After all this excitement the sequel is a quiet and moody instrumental number. It’s like having your tyres deflated. It takes a bit of adjustment but “Scumbag” has a patient and deathly atmosphere which imprints itself in the brain. The bass plods on. There’s a progressiveness about it. This is music of the night. There’s a real sense of being in the depths but it runs out without a conclusion. Brain adjustment is once again required as “Evasion Undone” begins. This is a technical metal piece with a hint of jazz, twisting and turning urgently. A death vocal complements the circular bass growliness. It’s good but I felt there should be something on top of it … a bit of human beansauce maybe … to give it still greater identity. Nevertheless I admired its deep and dark quality and there’s good movement.
For the umpteenth time the mood changes again. I had started to play a little game and try to relate the track titles to what I was listening to. I wasn’t succeeding. “Battery” should be energetic, surely, but it starts thoughtfully and quietly. I expected it to explode to explode into a riotous and colourful melodic death metal scene but it doesn’t happen. I was learning to expect the unexpected. “Battery” carries on being pensive and slow. There’s a touch now of Ephel Duath in that jazz-inspired bleak and moody vision of crumbling walls. It’s uncompromisingly intense and grey yet has artistic beauty. The end is false, but there’s no time to ponder as “Cadger” takes on industrial motions. Imagine the parts of a machine in motion. This should be called “Productivity” or “Moving Parts”. It’s like Canvas Solaris taking up death metal riffs. The pace picks up. It’s always progressing. Chunky pieces of bass hit us hard. It’s almost violent but doesn’t reach fury as the swirling machine continues its technical metal protection. Ha, an appropriately-titled track – “Silent First”. With its jazz bass intro, silence almost reigns and borders on death, but in amongst it the man pipes up with a disturbing and I guess deliberately discordant vocal line. Atmospherically, this is creepy. Death is averted by a twanging bass line. It’s downtrodden still but like a breath of fresh air. Mellow moments then feature, as the calm jazzy atmosphere brings out menace and stillness. I’d have called this “The Last Drops of Life”. It’s actually called “No Exposition”. The album goes more upbeat again as there is a return to steady and circular metal progressiveness, accompanied by a programmed drum twirl. “Aladdin” then enters into industrial experimentation. There is no fear about this work. This is a very much a plus point. Strange patterns emerge from nowhere. In the case of “Aladdin”, there’s a mechanical end. To end, there’s the sadness to which we’ve become accustomed. “Waste” invites us to state into space as the notes are stretched out. Subtly desolate patterns are weaved. It’s almost minimalist. So the album ends on a gloomy note. I thought it deserved a better fate than a slow death.
The first thing to say is that this is an extremely interesting album. It’s one which absorbed me, and I would have no hesitation in listening to it again from end to end and being taken to another place as I do so. The frustrating part for me was its structure. I appreciated its experimental nature but the individual sections seemed to be flung together like a series of ideas without rounding them into a coherent whole. For me, opportunities were missed, as technically this is excellent and innovative. The ideas need to be fused, and so there needs to be a bit of work but the core of “Baculum” is great, and it clearly comes from the soul.
(6.5/10 Andrew Doherty)
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https://humanbeansauce.bandcamp.com
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