Always a pleasure when a self-released CD turns up in well done, thoughtful packaging with a good bit of PR stuff and a few stickers thrown in. It just kind of helps convince you that the band have put in real effort and know what they want to achieve musically too. So good opener from US black metal band Humut Tabal on their second full length (with a bunch of splits under their belts, too). They cite improvisational and aleatory (that’s ‘luck’) styles from a huge variety of non-metal sources as part of their makeup which kind of had me scared that I’d be getting some unholy piss up between Ephal Duath and blackjazz Shining. Thankfully no. No, on the face of it this is fairly orthodox black metal. Except not quite.
Step inside and let me explain.
Opening with ‘Across The Boundless Lands Ov Death’ takes us on a straight in, heads down sweep into a sound part Sargeist, part Emperor with the balance there tipping towards the death metal edges. A freezing cold riff, technical riffing and drum battery but with that deep, soul hooking melody threaded through. Somehow here, though, it’s the way Humut Tabal go about their tempo changes that grabs you; there’s a deep, relaxed but precise kick to it, a tricky double step as they find that sideways great. It’s almost death-thrash and is so beautifully placed that it really gives the spine a good old rattle. ‘Through The Forest And Twisting Shadows’ goes a little further along their shamanic journey with a little more of everything; more Emperor and Cradle Of Filth deathened black (Look, I was assured at Music Reviewers’ Camp that ‘deathened black’ is a valid genre. Yes yes, ok that was the same camp that assured me that Vintersorg is called Vinty by his mates, too …), more of that driving tempo kick change going almost black ‘n’ roll and rising to a cracking crescendo.
I mean: This stuff is good. Good. There’s some cracking song-writing here. ‘Furious Winged Helldemons Soar’ is probably the closest they come to blatant flaunting of the expected jazz with some odd guitar chords racing up and down and bubbling bass but it mostly fucks with your head by putting in some real guttural brutal death vocals and making them work. Somehow following it up with the magnificent moody melody of ‘Alone In Purest Silence’ works to, the eye if the storm maybe. It certainly shows a band who can also handle restraint and just adds to the notion that they have a fine feel for dynamics and the flow of an album overall.
Maybe all that ‘improvisational and aleatory’ stuff is what gives this album such freshness. There is a verve and vitality here that is rare, as though with their music the band are skimming stones across all the genre’s that border black metal and (in a serious way) having fun doing it. ‘Wielder Of The Demon Blade’ shows they handle Cradle Of Filth and The Vision Bleak style dramatics without falling into self-indulgence, maintaining an entertaining and engrossing song with an idiosyncratic stamp.
I can only assume these guys are unsigned by choice. The packaging is great, the musicianship superb and the song-writing is excellent Even the production here is a few notches above merely serviceable. Having heard way too much technically sterile and standard orthodox black metal out of Scandinavia of late (with the obvious exception of the excellent last Sargeist monster), Humut Tabal are just a wonderful revitalising glass of wine. Orthodox in the most un-orthodox way, playing with style and with styles but firmly, totally, utterly black metal.
Impressed? You damn well should be.
(8.5/10 Gizmo)
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