Maleficio
11-19-2002, 05:59 AM
good review in www.digitalmetal.com
:))
Enter Chaos
Dreamworker
(Metal Mind Productions)
Enter Chaos is essentially somewhat of Polish metal supergroup, featuring former and active members of Poland underground. We have vocalist Lady Martex (ex-Immemorial), drummer L. Rambo (ex-Moon, Demise, Damnation), Guitarist Ozz (Demise), Blasphemo (Luna Ad Noctum), Novy on bass (Devilyn, Behemoth, Dies Irae), and is rounded out by programmer Raiden from ambient/trance band Aural Planet. Add to that that at one point the band also has had other members from Behemoth, and Trauma and essentially you've got a pretty harsh and talented bunch. It's no surprise then that the resultant noise is indicative of the varied background of the bands other current and former (still given credit for writing some of the songs) projects. That's to say it's varied, creative and at times enthralling, but also at times very confused and directionless. However, to its benefit Dreamworker does fill the void in Polish death metal by bridging the gap between the vast legions of brutality and the less than heavy goth music. Dreamworker's vaguely melodic, partially grinding and also fairly skillful. The melody is far more Chuck Schuldiner-ish rather than In Flames, and the grinding death parts are not the evil blasting of Vader, Yattering, Hate or Dissinter, but rather a controlled sort of discordant battery that actually reminded me of Disincarnate, especially the very James Murphy-like guitar work. Thrown into that rather decent mix are little utilized "psychedelic" soundscapes and effects that merely come across as short intros or outros. Firstly though, Lady Martex does a heck of a job with vocals, and to be honest upon my initial listens before I read the credits or band info, I would have hardpressed to tell she was a female growler. She's not as guttural as Sinister's Rachael, but is far more ballsy than Madame Cadaveria - Arch Enemy's Angela Gossow might have some competition. Musically, it's pretty competent, although you seem to tell when different guitarists are responsible for the writing (each was supposed to write 2-3 songs). The guitars vary from some pretty heavy, typical Polish death to a far more pleasing melodic tone; no surprise that the more melodic numbers are superior, and seem to fit the overall sound of Enter Chaos. It also suits the "supergroup" type atmosphere the band want to convey. Basically, in the grinding style you can hear on the members other projects, so creatively it's not a stretch for the band, but when they experiment a little bit and use Enter Chaos as more of an catharsis for otherwise unused outlets, it's far more impressive. Take "...And the Angels Sing" and the title track; perfectly competent Morbid Angel sort of songs, alternating between lurching grind and stuttering Polish blasting; decent but not awe- inspiring. Compare to say, closing track "Lost In Ecstasy" that features a more experimental blastbeat, epic solos and even uses the programmed effects during the song rather than just as a an intro. The result is very Sound of Perseverance, and borders on genius. The album seems to be a musical teeter-totter of sorts, alternating from excellent to the mundane. In fact, the first half of the album seems to be a far more derivative death metal clone, but the last half is a lot more melodic, adventurous and imaginative without sacrificing any harshness. "Electronic Zombies" features a chaotic blastbeat that is sandwiched between a nice At The gates style thrash riff and a churning breakdown. "Industrial Disease" follows and again seems a more varied track with much more layered and non-standard guitar work (despite the ferocious opening blast). That shows off the band's multiple guitarists. One real downfall was the synths and programmed effects; despite the desire to produce "psychedelic" death metal, those elements are never really fleshed out other than odd spurts between songs. Which is a shame, as when it was utilized more ("Lost In Ecstasy"), it worked well. Production-wise, Dreamworker's little muddy, 'cos if indeed there are four guitarists - it's hard to tell, even during some of the more sweeping emotive solos. The guitars have strange early '90s U.S. death metal fuzz (from the post-Morrisound backlash) that sucks some of the energy from the layered riffs. Either way this album is a strange one; as a supergroup it is disappointingly average, as with such a talented line-up, you'd expect a masterpiece more akin to Arcturus or Bloodbath. But as an album standing solely on its musical merits, not who did it, it;s fairly entertaining (including the At The Gates "Cold" cover). I think though, this is a prime example of too many cooks spoiling the broth. It will be interesting to see where the band goes from here with so many other commitments will they continue to have band members offer intermittent input via riffs and odd ideas? Or will Martex take control, and make the band a smaller more focused unit? I hope it's the later, as the Polish scene could use some originality and Enter Chaos appear perfectly capable of creating just that.
[Erik Thomas]
:))
Enter Chaos
Dreamworker
(Metal Mind Productions)
Enter Chaos is essentially somewhat of Polish metal supergroup, featuring former and active members of Poland underground. We have vocalist Lady Martex (ex-Immemorial), drummer L. Rambo (ex-Moon, Demise, Damnation), Guitarist Ozz (Demise), Blasphemo (Luna Ad Noctum), Novy on bass (Devilyn, Behemoth, Dies Irae), and is rounded out by programmer Raiden from ambient/trance band Aural Planet. Add to that that at one point the band also has had other members from Behemoth, and Trauma and essentially you've got a pretty harsh and talented bunch. It's no surprise then that the resultant noise is indicative of the varied background of the bands other current and former (still given credit for writing some of the songs) projects. That's to say it's varied, creative and at times enthralling, but also at times very confused and directionless. However, to its benefit Dreamworker does fill the void in Polish death metal by bridging the gap between the vast legions of brutality and the less than heavy goth music. Dreamworker's vaguely melodic, partially grinding and also fairly skillful. The melody is far more Chuck Schuldiner-ish rather than In Flames, and the grinding death parts are not the evil blasting of Vader, Yattering, Hate or Dissinter, but rather a controlled sort of discordant battery that actually reminded me of Disincarnate, especially the very James Murphy-like guitar work. Thrown into that rather decent mix are little utilized "psychedelic" soundscapes and effects that merely come across as short intros or outros. Firstly though, Lady Martex does a heck of a job with vocals, and to be honest upon my initial listens before I read the credits or band info, I would have hardpressed to tell she was a female growler. She's not as guttural as Sinister's Rachael, but is far more ballsy than Madame Cadaveria - Arch Enemy's Angela Gossow might have some competition. Musically, it's pretty competent, although you seem to tell when different guitarists are responsible for the writing (each was supposed to write 2-3 songs). The guitars vary from some pretty heavy, typical Polish death to a far more pleasing melodic tone; no surprise that the more melodic numbers are superior, and seem to fit the overall sound of Enter Chaos. It also suits the "supergroup" type atmosphere the band want to convey. Basically, in the grinding style you can hear on the members other projects, so creatively it's not a stretch for the band, but when they experiment a little bit and use Enter Chaos as more of an catharsis for otherwise unused outlets, it's far more impressive. Take "...And the Angels Sing" and the title track; perfectly competent Morbid Angel sort of songs, alternating between lurching grind and stuttering Polish blasting; decent but not awe- inspiring. Compare to say, closing track "Lost In Ecstasy" that features a more experimental blastbeat, epic solos and even uses the programmed effects during the song rather than just as a an intro. The result is very Sound of Perseverance, and borders on genius. The album seems to be a musical teeter-totter of sorts, alternating from excellent to the mundane. In fact, the first half of the album seems to be a far more derivative death metal clone, but the last half is a lot more melodic, adventurous and imaginative without sacrificing any harshness. "Electronic Zombies" features a chaotic blastbeat that is sandwiched between a nice At The gates style thrash riff and a churning breakdown. "Industrial Disease" follows and again seems a more varied track with much more layered and non-standard guitar work (despite the ferocious opening blast). That shows off the band's multiple guitarists. One real downfall was the synths and programmed effects; despite the desire to produce "psychedelic" death metal, those elements are never really fleshed out other than odd spurts between songs. Which is a shame, as when it was utilized more ("Lost In Ecstasy"), it worked well. Production-wise, Dreamworker's little muddy, 'cos if indeed there are four guitarists - it's hard to tell, even during some of the more sweeping emotive solos. The guitars have strange early '90s U.S. death metal fuzz (from the post-Morrisound backlash) that sucks some of the energy from the layered riffs. Either way this album is a strange one; as a supergroup it is disappointingly average, as with such a talented line-up, you'd expect a masterpiece more akin to Arcturus or Bloodbath. But as an album standing solely on its musical merits, not who did it, it;s fairly entertaining (including the At The Gates "Cold" cover). I think though, this is a prime example of too many cooks spoiling the broth. It will be interesting to see where the band goes from here with so many other commitments will they continue to have band members offer intermittent input via riffs and odd ideas? Or will Martex take control, and make the band a smaller more focused unit? I hope it's the later, as the Polish scene could use some originality and Enter Chaos appear perfectly capable of creating just that.
[Erik Thomas]