This is the follow up to last year’s EP, unsurprisingly with the title Senses Part 1, but my first exposure to this London-based Djent/Alternative team, although they appear to prefer the pigeonhole of ‘Sassrock’. Whatever you classify it as, it’s a cracking bit of technical metalwork on display here and they’ve come a long way since playing the New Blood stage at Bloodstock back in 2016. The first thing that strikes you is Cat Pereira’s strikingly haunting vocals. She’s got the kind of vocal talent that hooks you in from the get go – a beautiful timbre, a cracking range and the ability to apply totally different vocal techniques effortlessly and seamlessly across the songs. When a singer jumps between a clear and extreme style it often jars, but not here. Then there’s the matter of the twenty or so stops in between that she manages between those extremes and this is one voice. It’s not all about the vocals though and there is some really skilful technical playing going on here musically as well, with that effortless underplayed feeling that is the true mark of a cracking musician.
Even though the EP is only five tracks, they’ve put two singles out for this, which is a strange move. Forgotten starts off sounding like it might possibly they most radio-friendly track on here, but then the sounds shifts to full on technical metal with a total jump in vocal style again, forcing you to listen that little bit harder like sitting in the front row at a 20:20 cricket match when an unexpected six to the boundary takes out your pint…Take It All tries to fool you into thinking it’s a ballad from its opening bars before going full on power ballad in its final minutes, and is probably the most accessible track for a non-metal audience. However the EP closer We Are is probably the best showcase of the variety you can get in Derange’s music and the track I keep coming back to, because there is so much going on in the song’s 3’22” running time. The five tracks pass in a blur, and this is a band I would really like the opportunity to check out live. 7/10
Sinisthra: The Broad And Beaten Way (Rockshots Records) [Matt Bladen]
Sinisthra, which means "the left side" represents the allegory of general free thinking without being linked to Satanism/religion as it is with bands such as Entombed for example. The Finnish band released their debut album in 2005 but after that frontman Tomi Joutsen joined Amorphis and as his career with them increased, Sinisthra found themselves in limbo a little. However they have returned from the wastes with Joutsen behind the mic still to once again to spread their doomy, grungy, atmospheric metal sound that plays to Joutsen's baritone, emotive vocal style. At 6 tracks long you get a solid 42 minutes of music with some sprawling melancholic instrumentals that drive the 13 minute Closely Guarded Distance, though Halfway To Somewhere Else is probably more effective as a slow burning melodic doom number similar to Hallatar (another band featuring Joutsen) with a craning guitar solo, as things get heavier and more gothic with Morningfrail (check out those organs) and Safe In The Arms Of The Everlasting Now takes a jazz-inflection with some Paradise Lost like thump and ambience towards the end of it's 7 minute run time. The Broad And Beaten Way has had a long digestion period but it has paid dividends as this album is a sombre, spiritually awakening record from a band that hopefully have new life in 2020. 7/10
Fish On Friday: Black Rain (Esoteric) [Paul Hutchings]
Somehow we’ve never given Fish on Friday a review in these esteemed pages before. Given how the love of prog runs deep within the team, this is a major faux pas that is now dutifully corrected. Black Rain is the fifth release, their first coming in the shape of Shoot The Moon in 2010 with their most recent Quiet Life released three years ago. Fish On Friday comprise Frank Van Boguert on vocals, keyboards and guitar, Marty Townsend on guitar, drummer Marcus Weymaere and Nick Beggs on bass, Chapman stick and backing vocals. Beggs daughter Lula continues her appearances on FoF albums, following her two songs on Quiet Life with a further four here.
Gentle elements combine throughout. This is a crafted, delicate, and balanced album that refreshes from start to finish. There’s the Steven Wilson vibe on Mad At The World, with its pop sensibilities and vibrant bounce, the eight-minute epic of Murderous Highland Railway, teeming with atmosphere and melody and the dark Morphine. Tackling the way that the world is changing at such a fast pace, there are uplifting blasts of sun and happiness that contrast with darker tracks. Consummate musicians are always likely to make things sound easy and the laid-back confidence on this album simply flows. Angel Of Mercy for example, has Beggs adding sweet harmonies to Van Boguert’s clean delivery as the song meandered like a gentle stream heading downstream. There’s plenty of variation with the electronic flavour of We Choose To Be Happy, Lula’s backing vocals adding a nice touch.
What is most noticeable about Black Rain is that it is more than a collection of songs. There is a comfortable feel to it, and the album flows organically throughout its 55 minutes. The guitar work is understated, Beggs bass lines rarely steal the limelight whilst the keyboards and drumming both interlink comfortably. It’s a mellow, relaxed album which has arrived at time which could do with both. Pull up a comfy chair, pour a cuppa or a deep glass of wine and enjoy an album that shines from start to finish. 8/10
Okkultokrati: La Ilden Lyse (Southern Lord) [Rich Oliver]
La Ilden Lyse is the fifth album from Norwegian black & roll band Okkultokrati. Another band who have passed me by previously, Okkultokrati play an interesting mix of musical styles on this album. There main components of the Okkultokrati sound are black metal, hard rock, hardcore punk, post-punk and psychedelic rock. An interesting and at times jarring mix of styles you would think but somehow Okkultokrati just make it work.
The album is chock full of riffs. There are so many great riffs here that I lost count. You get gnarly black metal riffs , blackened rock and roll riffs, hardcore punk riffs and dirgy doomy riffs. You get all these different riffs combined with an apocalyptic atmosphere and a psychedelic twist. It is like Darkthrone, Black Flag, Black Sabbath and Killing Joke have all been dropped into a blender together and the result is Okkultokrati. The album starts with Thelemic Threat which is full of dissonance and reverb and a beautifully simple but nasty riff.
This simplistic but nasty approach is prevalent throughout the album from the psychedelic punkiness of Loathe Forever, the rawness of Cold And Cruel and the doomy trip of Freezing Vortex Death Dreamer. Okkultokrati have crafted an excellent album here. It sticks to the aesthetics of black metal whilst simultaneously taking the sound in many different directions. La Ilden Lyse is a raw and lof-fi album which is also rich and ripe with creativity and experimentation. 8/10
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