Severed Heads Open Minds is a blog I follow on the reg and an internet music-feeling-machine I've told my readers about here on this very blog and all it's social media outlets. It's that good (mind all the full-album downloads) and you have to know about it. One Chris D'Alessandro runs it and he's my guy. He's contributed to Halifax Collect on numerous occasion and it's been my turn to do the same for way too long. I suck like that. But finally, I submitted a spirited rant and below you'll find the first few paragraphs before the text falls off a cliff. Worry not. Hit the link and you can finish reading my thoughts on one of the most unique interesting album in years.
It was around two years ago, me and Chris of
Severed Heads Open Minds met for the first time… On a stormy day in Iceland, one of the first things we spoke of was
Jumalhämärä's
Resignaatio, as I asked him if he knew the band… He didn't. Most people don't. I then went into an aimless and poorly articulated description of the album's opening track "Ecstasy In Blood - A Ballad." I tried to explain that the song's arrangement didn't make any sense, how the blast beat was a foundation for at least two guitars and a bass, all of whom play the same riff essentially but not aligned and synchronized. Which means, they all harbor the same notes but "start" (for a lack of a better term) at different junctions in the bar of riff they are playing, overlapping each other, yet never negating one another.
It's hard to explain, but this cacophony of chaos, this wall of sound is absolutely beautiful. We're not talking odd time signatures and technicality, but a cascading stream of melancholic aggression. And when the "second part" kicks in and all riffs are played in sensible unison, the power of it all is exhilarating. The song ends in a cathartic mess of yells, yelps and screaming, like in an apocalyptic ritual and there's no stopping this song. Like falling into a never ending abyss. Humongous floor toms plod along in the back like a giant's heart beat. Stunning.
Chris - "Who do they sound like?"
Me - "No one."
Continue reading over at Severed Heads Open Minds (
here).
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JUMALHÄMÄRÄ - Resignaatio
This conversation transpired after the review was posted on a messageboard.
ReplyDeleteMeat Is Burger:
I bought Slaughter the Messenger when it was released because I saw a few keyboard-warrior purists dismiss it with statements along the lines of "sounds a bl.ack metal Ornette Coleman" and "what bl.ack metal would sound like if it was made in the 1960s" and figured it had something interesting to offer. Your review nails what makes the band unique - spacey/proggy stuff, psychedelic flourishes, unusual instrumentation used for texture, etc. are fairly common in the genre but the fundamental structural elements of Jumalhamara songs are truly strange, like five different songs busted apart and reassembled partially backwards. Complex but not gimmicky, surprising without sacrificing atmosphere or aggression. I remember one of the band members announcing Resignaatio on the NWN board as "adult-oriented bl.ack metal," which I thought was really funny and great. Haven't heard Resitaali - basically a drone piece, isn't it? If so, I am good with that as well.
Me:
I love your mind.
Resitaali could be filed as accordion driven drone. And I'm not kidding the slightest.
Meat Is Burger:
Well, that suits me perfectly. You familiar with the composer Pauline Oliveros? One of my favorites. Accordions and drones are her thing, so intentionally or not Resitaali sounds like it's in line with a fine tradition.
Me:
I'm not familiar with her. I went straight to youtube and I'm listening right now. First thing I can tell you is that she applies voices, additional instruments and electronics to her music, whereas Resitaali has little or none of that. Wow, I'm listening to shit from the 60s! She's great! Thanks for turning me onto her. That said, her more accordian-pure stuff seems very plausible as inspiration for our Finish friends. She uses some chilling start-stops in her accordion drone which is something Jumalhämärä are not doing on Resitaali.
CapunE:
jumalhämärä will release new mcd 17.4 called songless shores.
Me:
I got it sent to me last night.