alternative / black metal
Individuality is something that the 21st century cherishes a lot, maybe even more than anything else. In some sense it might be debatable, but this is neither the point nor the time. New Dutch black metal outfit do not think of the musicians as individuals in the context of their band but recognize the band as a single entity, you can easily see that when looking at the official band photos with all three members (note the non-committing initials M.T., T.D. and I.V. instead of names): All members are visible but either the photo is such out of focus that one can hardly recognize them or they bend over or the distance between camera and band is so great that the faces are recognizable but not identifiable. Thus, one must concentrate on the album itself. And that is easy, in some way.
If you like bands like GOLD or Turia or Karyn Crisis, then this band might be right up your alley. The tracks with no clearly obvious endings or beginnings form basically one long track (again – recognize the lack of individuality?) Nevertheless, one should now not feel inclined to call this record some kind of event or ritual, it is not. It is a record full of interesting little details, small nooks and crooks in each moment, be it a nice minor-key piano somewhere in the background, spherical ambient passages, vocal samples, little distortions in otherwise pretty clean guitar lines.
The band is channeling a lot of influences, some obvious, some not. The “tracks” flow somewhere between blackened alternative metal, progressive rock and jazzy hard rock. They do not shy away from 70s-like guitar solos (T.D.s can do that easily) or unusual drum patterns (delivered by M.T.), but one band member should be noted: I.V. (is that a pun on ivy, that clingy plant?) – the female singer of Ainsoph is performing on a fairy like level – she never breaks out and has total control of her voice which is one of the band’s biggest standout trademarks as she doesn’t resort to harsh screaming but gives the harsh and complex metal tracks some quality that a band with a male singer simply cannot have.
This reviewer asks himself if she is aware that her individual effort stands out so much in defining the band and its signature sound. She is the individual in the band’s universe, its unique selling point and thus she shapes Ainsoph’s identity strongly creating a band that has something very individual going on, something highly individual and in that sense this debut is music for the 21st century.
Thorsten
If you like bands like GOLD or Turia or Karyn Crisis, then this band might be right up your alley. The tracks with no clearly obvious endings or beginnings form basically one long track (again – recognize the lack of individuality?) Nevertheless, one should now not feel inclined to call this record some kind of event or ritual, it is not. It is a record full of interesting little details, small nooks and crooks in each moment, be it a nice minor-key piano somewhere in the background, spherical ambient passages, vocal samples, little distortions in otherwise pretty clean guitar lines.
The band is channeling a lot of influences, some obvious, some not. The “tracks” flow somewhere between blackened alternative metal, progressive rock and jazzy hard rock. They do not shy away from 70s-like guitar solos (T.D.s can do that easily) or unusual drum patterns (delivered by M.T.), but one band member should be noted: I.V. (is that a pun on ivy, that clingy plant?) – the female singer of Ainsoph is performing on a fairy like level – she never breaks out and has total control of her voice which is one of the band’s biggest standout trademarks as she doesn’t resort to harsh screaming but gives the harsh and complex metal tracks some quality that a band with a male singer simply cannot have.
This reviewer asks himself if she is aware that her individual effort stands out so much in defining the band and its signature sound. She is the individual in the band’s universe, its unique selling point and thus she shapes Ainsoph’s identity strongly creating a band that has something very individual going on, something highly individual and in that sense this debut is music for the 21st century.
Thorsten
