(BOG REVIEW) - "HATESPHERE" (DEATH THRASH) - "GUILLOTINE" (RELEASED OCTOBER 9TH, SCARLET RECORDS)
A band Bog isn’t too familiar with, Stenchers. He knows of them and who they are, but as always, Bog is looking purely at the music and its sonic value.
Guillotine was a difficult experience, and there wasn't too much Bog energy on display while listening.
Musically speaking, this isn't a terrible standard in terms of musicianship, composition, mixing, mastering, frequencies, riffs, drumming patterns, and breath control from the vocalist.
Everything is synced and timed well. Stenchers, you may experience a different vibe than Bog, but Guillotine is an album that doesn't have that punch or enough grime contained within the sound.
So, let's try to scribe some positives about the best/stand out tracks, or at least say why even those didn't grab the muck maw.
4. Morbid - is probably the banger from the album, but there are some issues with it. It is fast, direct, thrashy, and has a hardcore vibe coming through the music, then we reach 0:50 seconds to a complete pause in pace and a breakdown (not a hardcore breakdown with riffs, etc.).
There is a brief display of blast beats, and the vocals change dynamics, which is good for how to display range from that aspect. The track does transition back to what Bog liked at the start, but here is the problem: the pause and clean, melodic riff notes completely shattered the ferocity.
Bog was completely amped, roaring to jump around in the swamp, then—stop. The very polished notes just made him sink a little.
Morbid possesses sick speed out of the gate, just like when Bog is on his bike waiting for the gate to drop (not The Gate, we will smash that one), then he races forward to hit the first corner only to be stuck on the line with a complete reduction in pace and think, ugh, where did the speed go? Sadly, it stripped the momentum away from the music and the track.
If that brief passage and the clean melodic riff notes had been removed, then it would be a non-stop banger for sure.
5. Cleansing - Isn't bad. It has some pace in parts, but it just didn't grab Bog's ears or feel like there was any substantial grime within the music. It's like Morbid; it starts and you are like "whoa," then it just loses something. It is like a car on the track completely shifting down and turning on the spot, then after a short time, the driver revs, decides to go fast again. It would be fine if there were a heavy, dirty riff, but it is a little mellow-ish and lacks the angry punch needed.
BTW, we are not anti-clean music, or anti-serene/melodic, but what works for some genres doesn't for others. In this instance, the polished production sequences detract from the heavy soul, which is unfortunate.
6. Snake Charmer - Is not a bad metal song. It has a mid-pace feel, but it feels a little too clean in places and, again, lacks a nasty throttle.
7. Mouth Filled With Barbed Wire - The track has the pace and speed at the start, but as already mentioned, it lacks the dirt to hold that energy you feel when something hits hard and fast. Heavy doesn't always need to be fast, but despite the change-ups to transition to a quick tempo again, it just didn't hold Bog.
Mouth Filled With Barbed Wire does slow again, and overall the vibe is too clean, diminishing the ferocity in the heavier parts of the workflow.
10. Heresy—The closing track is arguably one of the other best tracks on Guillotine outside of Morbid. There is some dirt in the sound, but the over-produced and polished parts shift the gears down too low to leave no burn on the track.
Bog's Thoughts:
Bog does feel HATESPHERE can play and write a sick album. There are elements of the heavy fury in brief parts of some of the tracks mentioned. They can structure, layer, and sequence their drops, and the mixing and mastering reflect the ability to sync nicely. Every instrument is balanced flawlessly, and there is technical skill on display.
However, the production sounds too sanitized, which has ironed out the grit, leaving the music sounding sterile and boring. It served as a dampener on the anger, with no visceral, muck-stained fingers to grab the ears.
It can be a tough balance; you don't want to sound too much like a sewer, although for some genres you actually need to be. That said, here we have an example where it has gone too clean, which doesn't work, in Bog's opinion, for this style.
If Bog were spinning some of these tracks live, he would beat-jump past the filler and drop in the mosh parts to maintain the energy for the room.
Sadly, Guillotine is about as much fun as watching a game of soccer.
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