Well, I knew this was going to be a beasty that was going to be hard to contain! It was last summer when Aberdeen based band Cyclops Cataract dropped their debut EP ‘Swallow The World’ and it proved to be a right old head-scratcher. It was the somewhat schizophrenic nature of the compositions on it that really made me sit up and listen as it was although short something that didn’t stand still for a second taking the listener on a crash course through the sub genres of extreme metal. Anyone not wearing a crash helmet whilst experiencing it would probably not have survived the course. Now we have a debut album and it’s an hour in length. Thankfully the band penned a quick note and helpfully describe themselves of ‘cinematic death metal’ which is certainly a good starting point. They then go onto mention black metal, grindcore and ambient but seriously that is just the tip of the iceberg. To make things even more interesting each of the songs in this Bestiary depicts a different creature from the legends of Scottish folklore and the main numbers are wrapped around by the poetry of Robert Burns and that of a traditional Gaelic verse.
After Burns is offered via Crass like ambience the music starts with a somewhat heather-scented flavour that has a traditional classical feel about it before its suddenly torn up by glitchy digital noise, that’s strange enough but things will get weirder. ‘Baobhan Sith’ sounds like something from Star Wars to me and am going to have to leave the creature research from the review as the music is hard enough to explain. This has elements of technical death to it and rasping blackened vocals, harsh barks and fluid melody. I guess it has a linear structure and they are not quite throwing in everything, there’s some symphonic elements to tail out on too but you can at least describe what they are doing here as songs and things all gel together too. Let’s have the paradox of naming a song ‘Hatred Forever’ and start it with birds tweeting and some nice lush keyboards then… the music flirts with progressiveness and death metal. Its kept very interesting by the keyboards underneath and there’s plenty to listen out for. The vocals too with gurgling growls and bestial snarls are pretty damn expressive before we slowly waltz into an odd dance. It’s like being at a ball in a Disney film on acid as we suddenly move into some metal guitar histrionics and a scorching solo flying out the speakers. What the hell is going on and even more importantly how is it even making any sort of sense? These are some of the questions this album will ask you and so far, we are only a few tracks in. ‘The Devil Of The Sea’ could be described as something akin to black and death weirdness as these humanoids of the deep come out of the briny surf. There’s a definite eccentricity and oddness that could have you citing many different bands from the UK and finding elements of each in this but you would be changing your mind all the way; Akercocke, Necronautical, The Meads Of Asphodel, The Infernal Sea, Esoteric are just a few on the tip of my tongue listening to this but none of them fit quite right either.
These guys can really play though and they do it naturally and in very interesting ways. We got a long period where they are allowed to do just that without vocal accompaniment on the epic ‘Second Skin’ and they would be incredibly interesting to witness live, fitting in at any of the extreme festivals we are sadly missing at the moment. Whether they have managed much in the way of gigs since they are relatively new is uncertain but I bet they are raring to go. Black metal fans will certainly like the stalking Mayhem etched thorns on the monster that is ‘Venomous Serpent’ the vocals corresponding in a foul way with them, one thing’s for sure you would be very careful exploring the shores and lochs of Scotland after listening to this, danger lurks from all places. So too do those calming interludes from attack and the ambient slow burning passages creep and ooze away too giving the best of both worlds on a number like ‘The Beast’s Fill.’
Complexity and length here may well be a stumbling block for some venturing into this band for the first time but for those prepared to go with the flow and fully immerse themselves this is an album that could well see jaws dropping. I’m erring with the side of caution here as far as the mark is concerned, it could theoretically be higher but I don’t want to get carried away as I think this band have the lengths to surprise a lot in the future and grow into something truly monstrous (pun intended). Seriously though this is an album that is hard to sum up and the best way to decide for yourself is to actually put an hour aside and listen to yourself. Thankfully you can do that at the Bandcamp link below. I am glad a label have gone and taken a chance and picked up Cyclops Cataract and I have a feeling we will be hearing much more of their name in the future.
(8/10 Pete Woods)
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