Dreams of Dying Stars - Interludium V: Buried In The Void

Slow Motion Walk In Time.

This is the most recent release Stijn has released in the Interludium series, and possibly the final one as well; this is also his second to be released under the DoDS name. Like the first one that came out under this name, this record contains synthe based soundscapes that seem to evoke meditative conditions. No guitars, bass, vocals, or percussion were used in the making of this record.

This record differs from the previous Interludium album released under this name because, believe it or not, this record has more then one note played an hour. Although the changes in notes is not all that frequent, they do change, at somewhat random times, but does make this record a bit more listenable. The intended purpose to make it more tolerable actually works, and still maintains the contemplative state that draws the listener in.

Another thing that makes this record differ from the previous ones is that it doesn't have that darkness that the others had in them. This record, which is probably the most textured of Interludium records, is also the bleakest sounding and most monotone in terms of sound. Nothing ever comes in or makes you feel uncomfortable like other records did. Additional texturing comes in around the 30 minute mark and but never really moves things into a different realm.

Overall, this is actually about the same if you liked some of the very monotonous Interludium records. If you were a fan of those, you'll probably dig this as well, nothing new though. This is hopefully the last record that Stijn will release in this series of atmospheric drone epics.

Overall Score: 1.5

Highlights: There Is Only One Song

Organium - Interludium IV: Levitation

The Tranquil Noise That Slayed The Beast.

The fourth release in the Interludium series, released under the Organium name. Though Organium had supposedly been disbanded, Stijn felt that this record fit it's style too well, and he decided to put it out there under the name anyway. This record is, once again, very meditative in nature, prepare for a droning, but thought provoking, listen.

This record, as previously mentioned, was released under this name due to it's similarity in style with the Organium debut. The style of the aforementioned record was one that was described to be black metal without guitar or vocals. This was done through the use of organs and keyboards playing everything along with some occasional percussion. This record follows suit.

Not only does this record also differ from the more atmospheric drone of the previous records, and don't think that means that this one is not atmospheric or drone, it is, but it also feature 2 tracks instead of just 1 long one. But both of these tracks are still long; the first being close to 45 minutes, the second is almost 15. This breaks down some of the self-induced boredom a listener will receive.

The overall sound of this record is much more tolerable then the last two under the Interludium name. This record focuses much more on the organ for all manner of drone and atmospheric effects, and unlike the second Interludium record, which contained one, long droning note for an hour, this album features multiple keys being pressed, granted it is only once in a while, but it does serve to enhance the listen. This album proves to be much easier to listen to fully, then the last few.

These two tracks also provide a much calmer experience than others, remains very angelic and peaceful most of the time. While the ringing of the organ does keep things in that manner, the occasional droning feedback only serves to enhance the listen, rather then bring it down. While this won't put you into a trance as others did, it will captivate the imagination of the listener more so than the others.

The second track, Amber, actually has a sound that differs from the opener. This track features short melodic melodies that are not minutes apart from each other, but sequenced into almost catchy lead melodies. The entirety of the track is very tranquil and induces a very euphoric feeling when listening to it.

Overall, this record is a step up, and is actually worth hearing. Take a chance and go out on a limb to check this one out. May not be right for you, but you'll experience some of the better stuff that he's come out in this series.

Overall Score: 7

Highlights: Amber

Fall of The Grey-Winged One - Interludium III: Inritus

Echoes That Go Deep, Deep Down.

The third installment in the Interludium series is this album under the FoTGWO moniker. This album differs from the previous two, but still continues in the same vain as them. Expect more meditative music from this.

This album, right from the get go, has proven to be much more enjoyable than the previous one. The sound of this record is still very drone and atmosphere based that doesn't change or prove to excite you, unless you're a hardcore minimalist drone fan. The sound gradually builds up towards a steady fuzz that slowly moves into the front of the sound and covers everything else.

The thing that makes this record one of the most interesting drone records I've heard, is how the guitar is played, cleanly. I'm not even sure that what's being played the whole time is a guitar, because it sounds like a piano at some points. But an echo/delay pedal is definitely used to draw out each note into a vast sound of drone. But this can wear thin on any person, as the pattern played never really changes, drone music tends to not do that, but the gradual guitar patten just gets old.

The use of keys is also present throughout the track. Though it could also be uses as a piano, it is used more for distant atmospheric texturing. Like all of Stijn's more ambient works, faint traces of the pressing down of keys can be heard in the background of the drone. Phazers also move into the sound to accompany the drone.

Overall, this record is only mildly entertaining at best. Once again, fans of drone will probably find this record enticing, but maybe not even that. This record begins to teeter on boring after about 10 minutes, not Stijn's best work by far.

Overall Score: 1.5

Highlights: There Is Only One Song

Dreams of Dying Stars - Interludium II: Aeon E

Droning Sounds Echo Forever.

This is the second release from the Interludium series that Stijn van Cauter has released. This is the first in the series to be placed under the Dreams of Dying Stars name, and it reflects the style of the band's older work. This is one song that is best to listen to in the dark, just a warning.

This album differs from the last album released in this series due not only to stylistic differences, but also due to the fact that this is much darker sounding. This is not some drone metal piece like the previous album's work, though that was more ambient soundscapes, this album is more focused in the droning ambient realm. The form of this album is a single ringing note that goes on and on throughout the cycle of an hour.

As the track progresses, it gradually becomes more and more trance inducing. As stated, this is best for listening to in the dark, this allows you to mearly take in the drones and enter a very meditative state. It can either be used this way, or for more contemplative reasons, being thought inducing.

The production of this track suits it well, being somewhat lo-fi, not that you can really tell all that much with what's going on. As there is only one note being played continually, you'll hear small blips and fuzz within the droning of the sound. Feedback also starts to come out once in a while, but never makes it to become a disturbance in any way to the trace.

Monotonous or minimalistic, both apply here. The performance, of sorts, can be looked at from both sides and both are correct. The entire structure is somewhat structureless and never changes into a different key or time signature, as such, is minimal at its least. Monotonous is all a point of view that a person can take whether they can endure the hour of noise.

Overall, this is a straightforward record that doesn't have a lot going on. Fans of drone music will find this to be a welcome addition to their collection. A lot of people can probably ignore this release and go for DoDS other work unless they're a die-hard-collector.

Overall Score: 1.5

Highlights: There's Only One Song

The Dillinger Escape Plan - Option Paralysis

A Growth? An Evolution? What The Fuck!?

The Dillinger Escape Plan is a mathcore/technical metal band from New Jersey. They have evolved with each passing album, growing ever more progressive in their song-writing and experimental in their style. This new album is the accumulation of everything they've ever done and shows very little that other bands are even doing right now.

Not only is this DEP's most progressive record yet, it is also their most cohesive and metal sounding, in the words of guitarist Ben Weinman. The aggression that has been present of previous records is now much more focused and melodic sounding. The overall sound mixes punk-like aggression, technical metal's spastic frenzied riffs, poppy melodic hooks, and progressive experimentalism. Songs are no longer just one-sided, crazy and spastic tracks are now mixed with melodic pop, shown in a song like Gold Teeth On A Bum.

The spastic technicality of DEP is still fully a part of the band's sound and is still very much their trademark on this record, just like the ones that preceded it. Songs like Good Neighbor and Crystal Morning are full of the stuff that will make fans of "Calculating Infinity" foam at the mouth. Even a song like Endless Endings has a mix of that sound with some of the vibe from "Ire Works" mixed within it.

Vocalist Greg Puciato demonstrates greater vocal prowess than ever before. His screams are gut-wrenching and his singing is melodic and on key. He also periodically switches between the two with relative ease, which only makes his role as a performer live even better.

This is also the first appearance of new drummer, Billy Rymer, on record. His playing on this record is very much in tune with guitarists Ben Weinman and Jeff Tuttle out of control riffs and breakdowns. His playing showcases much more double-bass drumming then on other records, and only serves to give you even more trouble listening to some of these parts.

Jazz pianist Mike Garson guests on this album.Widower, one of the tracks, is somewhat unexpected from DEP, as it is very much a progressive song, rather than a mathy song. Beginning very much like a ballad, but moving into a melodic metal sound, unlike anything heard on any other DEP album, EP, or even song. But as the song moves on, it moves into more traditional technical DEP territory. He also plays on I Wouldn't If You Didn't, a song that begins like a regular track, but soon moves into the melodic vain of a radio rock band, only to then explode again.

The final track, Parasitic Twins, is probably the oddest track on the record. This song has an almost Mike Patton sensibility to it, moving from electronic pop, to jazz, to rock-ballad, to avant-garde metal without hesitation. This is the one track that probably stands out among all the rest and is a fitting end to this record.

Overall, this record is what I would consider the essential Dillinger record. Demonstrating the largest jump between records and also showcasing elements of everything they've done in the past. Any fan of progressive and experimental music should check this album out, as there is something on here for everyone.

Overall Score: 9.5

Highlights: Every Song Is A Highlight

Ludicra - The Tenant

The Landlord Is Waiting.

Ludicra is a progressive/atmospheric black metal band from California. "The Tenant" is their fourth record and definitely demonstrates some newer soundscapes and influences in their sound. While still remaining firmly in their core blackened sound, this record is much more adventurous than their other bands in their genre.

The sound of this album definitely brings new colors into the fold of Ludicra's sound. The opening riff on Stagnant Pond is strangely reminiscent of Enslaved's newer work, and this style continues throughout the record, ever expanding and building upon itself. Even the use of more avant-garde sounding solos are used within the songs, but have a very Iron Maiden sound to them, remaining very harmonized and melodic sounding.

Black metal is still very much a part of Ludicra's sound, in the same way that black metal is still a part of Enslaved or Ihsahn's sound. More odd sounding riffs are constantly present on the record and the black metal parts have more in common with Venom and bands of that nature, kind of thrashy/punk sounding. Whether this is good or band is all up to the listener, but it has a different feel to it's sound than most bands within the "atmospheric black metal" tag, like Xasthur or Wolves In The Throne Room. Even doom/sludge enters the band's sound on this record, on Clean White Void, which also has the best solo on the album on it. Post-punk also mixes in with the title-track, demonstrating a different sound that the band hasn't done before.

Vocalist Laurie Sue Shanaman demonstrates a very Arch Enemy-esque vocal technique. The style is very aggressive sounding, never crossing the line from death metal vocals into black metal, and just remaining in between. But even clean vocals are used on here as well, but are used sparingly and are never full-on belt-outs; the remains very choir and chant-like, being very somber and sober sounding.

Unlike a lot of band under the black metal label, Ludicra has a bass that is fully audible and actually has a part in the band's sound. Bass lines are fluently spread across songs like butter on bread, and are just as good. The rumble is perfect for keeping things rooted against the more melodic and psychedelic riffs that are the focus on the album. All of these things are showcased on the centerpiece of the album, The Undercaste.

Something that strikes me as odd, is the occasional strumming sound heard on tracks. This sound seems to be an acoustic guitar, and seem to just appear without warning; and while acoustic guitars are used on this record, these parts are during electric riffs. They don't seem annoying or anything bad, it's just a little odd.

Overall, this is a strong record that has surpassed my expectations of it. Combining elements of blues-folk, black metal, doom metal, and prog rock and putting them all into a sort of punk aesthetic. This is a record fans of black and sludge/doom should check out for sure.

Overall Score: 9

Highlights: Stagnant Pond, In Stable, The Undercaste, The Tenant

Winds Devouring Me - No Love

This Is One Way to Spend Your Day.

Winds Devouring Me is a drone band from Latin America. What separates this album, or EP as he puts it, is that this album is possibly the longest single track ever recorded. This one song is 3 minutes short of being 9 hours long.

Although this is a project, it is also somewhat of a collaboration between 5 artists; Alexis Brantes, Malakias, Bicho, Stijn van Cauter, and Diego. The collaboration takes people from Mexico, all across South America, and Belgium and allows them to mix their own take on drone noise all in one. While I am personally unfamiliar with all but Stijn van Cauter, they all have had some history in the realm of drone, doom, and noise music.

This track moves through different phases throughout it's course. The inclusion of simplistic drone, ambient, symphonic music, industrial noise, and subtle other influences all make their way into the overall sound of this album. This album also features the use of electronic drums and drum machine work. But while these thing create a little more variety for the album's sound, it doesn't help when you're staring 30 minutes worth of an almost 9 hour song without much changing.

For the length of the record, and for all I know it is, the track sounds improvised. Short spastic drum patterns that bring to mind even techno for a little while seem to appear early on, while a short carnival melody appears shortly after without rhyme or reason. Ambient music is what seems to encompass most of this album, retaining a large amount of quiet and sombre moments that carry with them small and subtle melodies before moving, or fading into louder and more experimental parts.

Another thing that comes to mind while listening to this entire piece as a whole is that it is quite possible that the collaborators even made this one piece of music. The way that this comes across as sometimes very ambient, sometimes very drone metal-esque, sometimes very orchestral all seems to lead that each artist might have just done their own piece/section and then they put them all together. That or they just put different pieces together of each artist's own work on the piece.

The use of classical melodies appears throughout this record, whether it's up front in odd piano playing or strange atmospheric strings. This gives the record a bit of a unique shift from the noise that started the track. When comparing this sound to that of other drone artists, other than the length of the track, it also features more prominent classical sections that bring out a somewhat avant-garde tendency to this music, rather than just a drone piece.

Throughout all the avant-garde-ness of this record it seems to show elements of more old-school sound and shift into a futuristic sound without much trouble. This is demonstrated through the use of more tribal and classical parts and shifting into more industrial noise sections, once again - improv(?). But this only adds to the sort of mystique that this release showcases.

Overall, this record could have turned into a major disaster, but instead, showcases extreme talent in minimalistic composition by these artists. Proving that just because a single piece of music is long, it does not have to be boring; and while there are still a lot of moments that could have been trimmed down, this record is still fairly entertaining. When the more experimental classical elements come out with bleak atmospheres in the background, are the highlights of the album. But simply because of it's length, some of these parts just become overly monotonous and repetitive sounding and only serve to hurt the record.

Overall Score: 5.5

Highlights: Selective parts of this record

By the way, I'm not entirely sure that this is the band's real name or the album title, I'm going off the download from label. Feel free to correct me if you know the real title or band name, if I'm wrong.

Download the album for free here:

http://funerart.wordpress.com/