This October is a lot more dry than I expected it to be. Apart from releases from bigger names, the understream level is quite low! Let’s see what I salvaged anyways.
Redrick Sultan is a psychedelic rock band using microtonal instruments as their main composition strategy. The songs, which I believe are in nineteen notes per octave -, are nonetheless very accessible and enjoyable. There are a few places, here and there, where their tuning system clashes with our perception, conditioned to twelve notes per octave, but, with a short adaptation time, you will get to appreciate even the most alien intervals and chords they use. It’s a great album, and songs like ‘Panda’ will stay in your head for quite some time.
Bent Knee just released a three song EP (along with their live versions) called Leak Water to celebrate and promote their tour with The Dillinger Escape Plan. The songs were originally on their two latest albums, Say So and Shiny Eyed Babies, which we adored. Of note is the live versions of them. Live versions are generally not as good as their studio forms, but Bent Knee is one of the rare groups to nail their compositions to the perfection, even improving them with their own idiosyncrasies. Awesome!
Some Some Unicorn recently released Unicornucopia, their sophomore album. Deep into the realms of free jazz and minimalism, it’s not really something tailor-made for me, who almost always prefers complexity over anything else. However, this record is undoubtedly interesting in its own right, and made with a quality only attainable by expert musicians. I highly suggest you make a short listen for yourself, and decide on your own.
Lilium Sova‘s newest album, Lost between Mounts and Dales/Set Adrift in the Flood of People, is an experimental instrumental mathcore album. The band consists of a trio with bass, drums, and either cello (on the ‘Valley’ side) or guitar (on the ‘City’ side). The ten tracks on record make up two songs of over twenty minutes in length. Both sides are really interesting in their own right, and, thanks to the change from cello to guitar, are quite different and have their own personalities. ‘Valley’ is made up of six songs, while ‘City’ consists of four longer tracks. The whole thing is very good for instrumental post-hardcore and mathcore fans. Plus, it’s name your price on bandcamp!
Resina‘s self-titled album sends us chills and feels from Poland, with their classical atmospheric pieces. I would be tempted to call this atmospheric post-hardcore with classical music instrumentation, but without the singer, guitars, bass, and drums, it would be somewhat confusing. It’s a lot like So Hideous orchestral tracks of ‘Laurestine’, but without the so hideous leaking drums and production that made this version totally unbearable to listen to. The seven tracks on Resina are very interesting on their own, and include advanced techniques to bring mental images to their sound, just like the glissandi on ‘Flock’, mimicking a volley of birds, not too far away from Didier Lockwood’s famous Les mouettes. Highly recommended.
Black Table – artistically spelled ⧖⧖ – made some ripples with their 2012 album Sentinel. This year, they’re back with Obelisk, and, while not being exactly the successor I expected it to be, it proved to be more than that. Tweaking their sound just slightly, they’ve become something else entirely, and I think it’s even better than previously. Obelisk is thus a great and frightening post-black metal release you should get your hands on.
Kylver is a new name to me. I did overhear it before, but I apparently forgot about it until now. Their new album, The Island, is an instant classic for modern progressive rock looking in the rearview mirror. This concept instrumental album is overflowing with synthesizers, organs, and odd-time signature riffs, making for a nostalgic experience that’s totally anachronistic by design, and I love it for that. They are one of the few bands doing the retro prog thing right, nowadays!
Did you know there’s a new The Dillinger Escape Plan album out? I’m not talking about Dissociation, but rather Dead Kiwis‘ Karaté Karnage. The EP is very short, at sixteen minutes, but demonstrates the band’s mastery of the chaotic hardcore/mathcore genre in seven tracks. Seriously, if not for Greg Puciato’s so recognizable voice, I could believe that this EP came straight from the Dillinger camp! Fast-paced dissonant chords and rhythmic intricacies underlie this constant aggression barrage. France never ceases to amaze. Give ‘Satan666’, the only available song for now, a shot. Karaté Karnage comes out in January 2017.