Showing posts with label Future Fusion Metal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Future Fusion Metal. Show all posts

Wednesday, 6 March 2024

Mnemic "Mnemesis" (2012)

 
Disbanded not long after, Mnemesis is the Danish outfits final chapter. Initially Bideau's expanded vocal range caught my attention, feeling like a departure from their distinct "Future Fusion Metal" sound. With familiarity the rough cleans, burly shouts and tuneful inflections nestled in, however an underlying shift remains. Subtly toned down aggression leaves space for melodic flavors to capture ones attention. These songs run into frequent stretches of dulled world building stints. Mediocre in intensity, they fail to arrive at gratifying destination. The result is a set of songs that amble through the motions, landing only a handful of memorable riffs or vocal hooks.

Illuminated by subtle eerie synths, the dystopian tone is withdrawn from its previous extremities, creating a luke-warm atmosphere, rarely broken out from. Its mood is a sluggish, sunless, shadowy trek, emotively depressive when aggressive guitars depart on melodic refrains. That's not to de-mark its merits, Mnemesis is a competent set of songs ruminating on burdensome emotions. A listen, of which I've had many, passes by entertaining yet uneventful. Its closer, Blue Desert In A Black Hole, gets a thumbs up for fantastic song writing that steadily brews its sense of finality to close upon.

Rating: 4/10

Thursday, 8 February 2024

Mnemic "Sons Of The System" (2010)

 

Having established that Passenger carried on with Mnemic's glorious throws to youthful nostalgia, Sons Of The System swiftly verifies itself as a gradual departure. The pillars of Industrial tinged Djent chugs remain, yet become part of the scenery, a rhythmic current to transition into roars of sketchy heathen "clean" vocals. Singer Bideau sheds skin, establishing his own vocal style, often stretched over mid tempo breaks lined with softly dystopian ambiguous synths. The rhythmic chops divide the flow as aggressive riffs frequently exchange with these disenfranchised breaks.

This artistic direction subdues the bands original charm, scaling back complexity and trying to elevate its atmospheric angle. The result blemishes their uniqueness, giving Sons Of The System a generic leaning sound for the European Metal scene of the era. Despite this step back, they still reside with strong footing. The record has its helping of banging riffs, mostly obnoxious shuffles of low end fret work. Its moody vocal led counterparts aren't terrible either, just a tone I am accustom too.

The record lumps its hardest hitters at the front doors. As it progresses, the tempos steady, its aggression tempers and more atmospheric passages open up, reminiscent of Prog Metal in moments. Songs shuffle through the motions with little in the ways of peaks or valleys, just a consistent tone. The inclusion of bonus tracks that didn't make the cut was a nice addition, the grinding Claus Larsen remix a missed opportunity.

Rating: 6/10

Thursday, 25 January 2024

Mnemic "Passenger" (2007)

 
Laying the ground work for this post, yesterday I wrote of The Audio Injected Soul, a now timeless record from the latter of my formative years. Their follow up, Passenger, was passed up upon release. All I recall was a dismissal based on the departure of Michael Bøgballe. Now a maturer listener, I venture back with an open mind.

My first observation was one of confusion. Bøgballe's replacement, Guillaume Bideau, has such similar tone and demeanor that he could be mistaken for the same guy. Singing with mirrored intensities, rhythmic cadences, dropping in snarls and quirky shouts akin to the record prior, he lands a seamless transition for the band.

Passenger can never compete with the immortality of youth. My growing familiarity with this record yields the same emotive stimulus though. At this stage, the iron is still hot for Mnemic, forging another array of chaotic fusions. Chugging jolted grooves collide with passionate dystopian melody across a post-industrial wasteland.

Playing with a touch more sludgy rhythm and distorted dissonance in the low end, the albums production admittedly sounds aesthetically like a minor step back. The prior tightness is lacking, its mostly the drums that feel looser. Guitars lean more towards aggression with a notable tilt in sharp edged riffs and slabs of shunting power chord noise. It aids an overall flavor that doesn't steer far from their established identity.

I'm going to continue chewing through these songs but so far a couple of favorites have emerged, usually where flushes of color and lead guitar compliment a song. Carcass's Jeff Walker drops brief but fantastic demented snarls onto Psykorgasm. Passenger doesn't pull any big surprises but competently builds on what they were known for. I'm gutted we passed this one up, these songs could have easily stuck too.

Rating: 7/10

Wednesday, 24 January 2024

Mnemic "The Audio Injected Soul" (2004)

 
Here lies an ecstatic throw back to the days of youth. Discovered through Nuclear Blast Records magazine, this Danish outfit captivated our attentions with rhythmic grooves adjacent to Meshuggah's records of the time. Residing in the infancy before Djent took on its current sanitized form, Menmic's gritty Industrial polish and flashes of electronic textures morphed them into a memorable metallic beast.

Born in the hangover of Groove and Nu Metal, roaring shunted riffs collide against subtly dystopian melodic leads in search of new ground. I recall this particular scene once being referred to as "Future Fusion Metal" but despite the endless iterations of sub-genre, this name never took hold. One can hear echos of Melodic Death Metal and Industrial Metal but its most notable distinction are the elasticated "poly-rhythmic" guitar arrangements that make for frequent headbangers break outs. Chunky assaults on the fretboard that frequently flirt with a choppy, charactered ferocity.

The band don't overstate any component but weave together its most aggressive assignments and tuneful tangents. These arrangements emerge chopped and changed, not through complexity but variety. The pace at which an average track cycles through its sections is refreshing. It gives them character, as its swings and sways feel unpredictable, even after the album has been etched into ones memory.

Its offering can't be overstated, a fantastic range of soaring melodies to rhythmic slabs of low end force, melding through a creativity that never felt forced or intentional. The bellowing roars of front man Bøgballe often illuminates the energetic trajectory the instrumentals traverse. It could be passion of youth but I think this record is a lost gem, a cracking collection of momentous songs that any fan of Metal could find a favorite among its ten lean cuts. Still a favorite after all these years...

Rating: 9/10

Saturday, 5 February 2022

Dagoba "What Hell Is About" (2006)



After writing about this French Metal outfits latest release On The Run, I realized I had already checked in with them a few years back on Black Nova. I'd forgotten much of that record and this one too, until a couple of spins had the nostalgia jogged with memories rushing back in! This was one me and my friends enjoyed on rotation during the heyday of the Deathcore scene, which they were not part of. With ICS Vortex lending his voice on a song, I suspect the discovery was related to Dimmu Borgir.

The bands aesthetic is a sonic assault of elasticated exaggerated grooves, playing out on seven string guitars. With a rhythmic battering from the pedal clicking drums and the aggressive roaring shouts of Shawter, the band have an intense sound constantly erupting head banging riffs. The ace up the sleeve has to be the synths that frequently shift in and out of focus, often layering in simple chords or single notes to beef up the musics atmosphere with an astral coldness. The precise mechanical slugging of brutal rhythms in between help play up an Industrial Metal component too. This chemistry is ripe for the elusive Future Fusion Metal genre label that never stuck around.

These songs are well written, balancing out the aggression with an uplift and respite as melody and "cleaner" singing work there way into some tracks. It gives the record pacing as it can't rely solely on chugging stomps of low end guitar djenting and pinch harmonics for its forty four minutes duration. The production is very much of the time, clicky drums and dense guitar tones making progress in sounding clearer but still a ways to go compared to where we are now. Give it some volume and it will sound great. Revisiting What Hell Is About has been a blast! It is always nice to unearth forgotten records and get a dose of nostalgia in the process.

Rating: 7/10

Monday, 31 January 2022

Dagoba "On The Run" (2022)

 

I'm not overly enthused about this release. Its more of a passing curiosity for a band name I was surprised to hear are still going. Its was back in the early days of the Deathcore scene that my friends and I also listened to these French metallers who were in a different lane, the "Future Fusion Metal" breed that never really took off. Melding an earlier take on Meshuggah's chunky Djent guitars, blisteringly fast mechanical drumming and an atmospheric helping of electronic synth, they caught our attention. They have since seemed to of escaped my interest... Perhaps I should revisit that record? Take another walk down memory lane! Music is always infused with memory for me.

Anyways, On The Run consists of two tracks still in that vein, modernized and toned down in intensity. The opening title track however goes for an accommodating temperament, a duet with an effeminate voice fit for more than just Metal. I couldn't find a name, but she has a style that steers the music into the classic European scene of decades past where women really started to get a foothold in the scene. The soft blare of trance synths nestled in the mix gives it quite the pop appeal. Initially it felt a little contrived but its an easy going song with a darker leaning that's grown on me.

Its following songs get meatier, shifting emphasis to big stomping grooves erupting between rough shouts and screams. The synths tend to play accents on the unfolding momentum but too get moments to shine and play up the Trance and electronic club scene vibes. Its a decent chemistry that doesn't amount to anything spectacular but does no harm either. A little astral in places, they distantly remind me of Aeons Confer. This has been a reminder of how enjoyable Metal can be, even if not much out there feels fresh or different.

Rating: 2/10

Wednesday, 8 April 2015

Raunchy "Vices.Virtues.Visions" (2014)


Danish group "Raunchy" snuck this one, their sixth full length, right under my radar last year. Raunchy are a six-piece group whos sound would lump them under the "Future Fusion Metal" name coined by Mnemic, describing the sound in the European scene. Combining many of the energetic elements of Industrial, Metalcore, Djent, Death and even Progressive Metal, their sound would be atypical if not for the Electronics present in the form of backing symphonics and Trance like leads that add a engrossing layer of electronic melodics. Their 2006 release "Death Pop Romance" impressed me immensely and earned them a reputation as a band I should always take the time to check out what they are upto.

The best of Raunchy comes from their clean melodic vocal lead hooks and infectious, poppy trance like melodies that ring out an uplifting mood along side aggressive, modern Djent metal riffage that pounds and grinds chugging rhythms with aggressive drumming. Its the moments that give way to the electronics that Raunchy find their niche, and they create these vibrant sing along moments song after song, but its the moments between where things don't move so smooth. The Metal side of their sound is relatively generic and the guitars lack a spark to create something with an energy or idea thats fresh to an experienced metal listener. It flicks like a switch as the songs build up with varying riffs and structures that lead to the implosive moment where the electronics drop in and time and time again this is where the magic happens.

"Vices.Virtues.Visions" is a decent effort, one that taps into the best of their unique sound, but drifts into mediocrity when the Metal takes lead. Clocking in at over an hour with a couple of lengthy numbers the moments between can drag, however the hooks and melodies are right on point. Another strength this record developed were some pounding festival like beats, you can envision the crowd clapping and fist pumping along to the bass kick that rings out as the music calms before the storm. Sound wise its representative of modern production, very audible and clear, the drums having a punchy and crisp tone about them. The electronics sounding superb alongside the crunchy guitars. Raunchy do a lot right here, but tiring of typical Metal guitars made a lot of this record dull for me. 

Favorite Tracks: Truth Taker, Digital Dreamer, Anasthesia Throne, I, Avarice
Rating: 5/10