Artist: Necro Facility
Title: Wintermute
Genre: Electronic
Release Date: 11th May 2011
Label: Progress Productions
Album Review
Back when the duo’s first album ‘The Black Paintings’ came out in 2005 not little people in music media billed NECRO FACILITY from Sweden as early SKINNY PUPPY copycat. Admittedly there’s been a strong resemblance to the band’s early phase yet something unique was to every of the tracks. The sophomore ‘The Room’ refined the trademarks on every level and added new elements, distinguishing them further from that icon’s sound. For a long time now the band’s been in studio mode to work on the follow-up ‘Wintermute’, dropping next week.
The album’s opening track ‘You want it’ is introducing itself with sublime strings atop a crunchy rhythm base that soon begins to venture into a zigzag kind of intricacy spiked with noises. It’s a natural environment for the sinister vocals of Henrik Bäckstrom to blossom. It’s been hinted at on the previous albums already, but on ‘Explode’ it’s really getting clear that Henrik’s doing well with melodic vocals as well. He’s evolved a lot in that department. Very early in the album’s duration comes a track which is as protean as it can get with ‘Cuts. It’s starting off on layers of melancholy guitar to dive headfirst into creepy industrial territory on bubbling drum figures, ominous moods and evil hissing vocals just to come back from the underworld later gaining momentum for a while. It is one beast of a track showcasing the great deal of production skills of Oscar Holter. ‘Do you feel the same’ is spooking around the scene for a while already, kicking off with a bit of a spacey introduction bursting into a kick-ass old-school electronic dance track bearing a surprisingly catchy chorus.
‘Fall apart’ sees the duo flirting with drum’n’bass influences and beefing the whole thing up with pounding beat sequences making the track a neat club filler. ‘Waiting for the snow’ is bursting with sonic experimentalism in a clash of different styles, taking off with the ambient beginning filtered through light distortion. A quirky beat is phasing in now piling up layer on layer until it virtually explodes. There’s a spoken-word performance in it and a cool guitar intermezzo. Also it is by far the brightest of the album tracks when it comes to the moods they’re radiating. You wouldn’t guess ’Ignite’ has to be taken literally. It’s like fuelling a rudimentary burning fire. At one point it’s going from melodic suspension into highly explosive dynamite on powerful drum kicks forming head-nodding beat salvoes. As far as the beats go ‘Krik’ is on par with its predecessor, but it’s increasingly more atmospheric, poppy and breathes the spirit of the 80s. ‘Supposed’ is coming off like an old school EBM track at first that salutes NITZER EBB until it’s morphing to become an angry future pop tune.
‘All that you take’ is ending the album in an unexpected way with a heart rending ballad, it’s melancholy moods frequently torn by distortion and noise as well as shifts in the rhythmic fabric. With their third one I think that NECRO FACILITY will finally be able to shake off the copycat image. It is in no way comparable to the previous ones anymore and here’s hoping people will recognize and acknowledge that.
Tracklist
01. You want it - 3:49
02. Explode - 3:40
03. Cuts - 4:09
04. Do you feel the same - 2:57
05. Fall apart - 4:20
06. Waiting for the snow - 4:40
07. Ignite - 4:36
08. Skrik - 4:16
09. Supposed - 4:13
10. All that you take - 5:27
Line-Up
Oscar Holter
Henrik Bäckström
Website
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Necro-Facility/329096005686
Cover Picture
Rating
Music: 9
Sound: 10
Extras: -
Total: 9.5 / 10
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