Get fresh music recommendations delivered to your inbox every Friday. FallenAngel Only the bassline alone on the first track justifies buying this. Robert Pollard. Rachel Wild.
Patrick Callahan. Jason Feary. Robin Lundgren. Jeramaya James. Kevin Walker. Jairo Arroyave. Consensus Reality. Dave Batovsky. Rob Johannsen. Isaac C. Rhys Knight. David B. Elijah McConnell. Eric Shattuck. Daniel Zidar. Including exclusive bonus track. Purchasable with gift card. The drums are laid back and cool and session bassist Bjeima plays some rather intriguing basslines.
Take a listen to the bassline in the opening title track for an example of that. First of all the production is very different from the bass heavy and dark production on "The Black Flux ". The sound is lighter and the guitar has a distinct thin sound. Not thin in a negative sense, but the sound is purposely not very distorted or heavy. The compositions themselves also deviate some. So while the band definitely have what I would characterize as a core sound, they are not afraid to try new things.
From a country known for its relatively wintery landscapes like Norway, I would not have expected to hear an overtly desert-rock styled album, as I do with avant-garde rockers Virus and their third full length. From the ashes of legendary avant-metal act Ved Buens Ende came Virus, a band that has often been met with conflicting genre labels and categorizations, and all to their credit; they do bear a strikingly unique sound to them.
From a personal perspective, I see the music on Virus' 'The Agent That Shapes The Desert' as being some sort of eccentric cross between fellow Norwegians Arcturus, and the latter- era Americana of drone pioneers Earth. Contrary to the 'metal' label that this band and album has been receiving alot, the sound is instead more rooted in a sort of jazz-inspired desert rock, full with dissonant riffing, strange song structures and odd time signatures to hold up the rear.
Instrumentally, I must say that the music is incredible at painting some quirky imagery of a post-apocalyptic desert, complete with tumbleweed and wind-bitten cow skulls.
Where the sound of Virus starts to go wrong with me are primarily to do with the vocals of Czral. Feeling far too highly mixed in terms of volume, Czral's somewhat operatic croon really tends to grind against the sound of the album, feeling cheesy and even campy at times. Although I will admit that the voice does grow with each listen, the mixing issue remains an issue. Also, while melody is obviously not a big concern with alot of avant-garde music, Virus' fairly concise and riff-based music songwriting could have done with some hooks to add a more engaging quality to the music.
An excellent album on an instrumental level, although I still am not yet convinced by the vocal work even after several experiences with it. Some interesting musical ideas going on here that end up getting drowned out by repetitive guitar riffage and sadly mediocre vocal work.
The result is a meandering melange of various metal instrumentation that is occasionally entertaining but seldom engaging. The most notable sonic compariso You must be a forum member to post a review, please register here if you are not.
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