Stjerneheimen – II (2013)

Velvet Blue

• Hardcore 
• Post-metal 
• Experimental metal 
• Avant-metal 
• DIY 
• Drone doom metal 
• Progressive 
• Improvised music 
• Freeformfreakout

Comment: these 13 tracks clocking in at a 20 minute are issued on Velvet Blue Records filled in with galvanized guitar-induced monoliths, rattling hi-hats and quirky threads dominated by sheer electronic effects and unusual drumming times and instrumental deviation all along. The more I am getting into it the more I realize the artist's intention just to manipulate with metal-related heaviness rather than serving it as the purpose. The listener can perceive how the aforementioned genres are disintegrated and pulverised for the sake of playfulness and artistic fun, for the sake of sonorous entertainment and artistic madness. The Convoys can be considered an exception of excelling at hardcore punk. Another exception is The Nothingness by doing away with the gravity of experimentation and heaviness of metal. Just to start off and fading into nothing as the title refers to. Thirdly, the issue is produced by exploiting DIY attitude and lo-fi approach of which artists are predominantly penchant for sonic experiments. This one is the case. Volatile handling on a guitar and rejecting demarcated stylistic borders reminds of another Brazilian maverick called Lucas Pastina aka LFC.

This Lonely Crowd Entangled Chaos (Velvet Blue)

Hooray! Tweedledum, Tweedledee, Humpty Dumpty, Red Queen, and Jabberwock are proudly back. The expectations toward their sophomore release are really high because of their debut album An Endless Moment Eveyday All the Time (2010, Sinewave) being madly energic and artistic through shoegaze- and post-grunge guitars, reminiscent of vocally Billy Corgan`s manner from Smashing Pumpkins. A salient mix of dream pop and power pop.

A new release, new coverprint, new direction, new measures. First of all, Humpty Dumpty don`t search anymore for Corgan-esque abrasiveness in his vocal manner, feeling more soft, murmuring, and dreamy - and often doing it in the cooperation with Red Queen. In fact, the vocal part is diminished, too, and the sound is properly arranged - without the dominance of chaos-driveness, the collapses of mayhems, crazily intense key changes, and driving-in and driving-off effects. Instead of powerful guitars there are rather airy guitars to be represented in consisting of dreamy even lethargic soundscapes, which subtle movement is sometimes "disturbed" by massive brown noise-alike exorced keys of guitars throwing up elemental hooks of the AEMEATT. Yet once time, in comparison with the first album the song structures are more transparent and predictable, thereby being a bit less attractive, though. In conjuction with it the release seems to be too short (4 tracks) also for playing out their transboundary conception in the complete way. But by measured on the absolute scale, it is a solid work, though. And the quintet`s coverprints are still one of the best, too, conveying the spirit of golden age shoegaze music to this day. An eye is resting while watching it.

Listen to it here

8.8

This Lonely Crowd Entangled Chaos (Velvet Blue)

Hurraa-hurraa!, Tweedledum, Tweedledee, Humpty Dumpty, Red Queen ning Jabberwock on tagasi. Rõõmustamiseks on põhjust küllaga, kuivõrd brasiillaste debüütalbum "An Endless Moment Eveyday All the Time" (plaadifirma Sinewave) selle aasta alul jagas hämmastava energialaksu power pop`i, shoegaze/dream pop`i ja hard rock/stoner`i kokteili vahendusel, kandideerides kindlasti üheks parimaks üllitiseks AD 2010. Vahepeal läkitas viisik mulle mõned uued lood, kus oldi suunda muudetud ning mis erilist muljet ei avaldanud.

Uus reliis, uus plaadifirma, uus suunitlus, uued võtted. Viimaste all pean ennekõike silmas tõika, et Humpty Dumpty ei kasuta enam distinktselt billycorganlikku kriipivat laulumaneeri, kuivõrd otsib oma (sageli unisoonis Red Queen`iga) - olles hillitsetum, sosisklevam, unenäolisem. Tõele au andes on ka vokaalosa vähemaks jäänud. Samuti on helikeel sellele vastavalt arranžeeritud - 4 träkki ei viskle permanentselt perutavates ning peadpööritavates kaosekeeristes-kollapsites, vaid rajanevad tinklevatel, õhulistel kitarridel, tõsi, mille letargilist loomust lülitatakse regulaarselt tasa massiivsete, pruuni värvinguga mürast seestunud kidraseinte ilmumisega, mida omakorda läbistavad monumentaalsed rifid, mille peale ei jää muud tõdeda, kui et This Lonely Crowd edeneb oma tuntud headuses - küll selle vahega, et struktuurid on rohkem läbinähtavad. Kokkuvõttes panen punkte vähem kui debüüdile, kuivõrd nende hüsteeriline (mina)pilt on jätkuvalt ahvatlevam.

Kuula albumit siit

8.8