New York is a metropolis drenched in music history. From Broadway, to the era of Frank Sinatra, to the rise New York hardcore, the city always finds a way to musically shine. Many of the artists and crooners of New York's heyday loved to hold the city on a very high pedestal. Few native New York bands/artists, minus some in the NY hardcore scene, tended to disrespect their beloved city. Hardcore and punk band's of New York focused on ideas of anti-establishment and anti-authority in their lyrics. The darker side of New York, the sleaze and grime seen in the dark back alleys, the high cost of living, and the crushing need to succeed in such an iconic city are often ignored in music. Avant-garde black metal band Imperial Triumphant use the bleak aspects of New York as a backdrop for their lyrics and song craft. Since their debut Abominamentvm, Imperial focus on the history and ever-present decay of the city they call home. The band gained more widespread attention with their 2018 album Vile Luxury; which expanded on their typical lyrics and themes by adding a dash of retrofuturism into the mix. Imperial's love for retrofuturism can be seen in their artwork and stage costumes. Now in 2020 comes Alphaville, a weird, dizzying, and musically dense journey into the aphotic depths of New York City
(Stream the album here. Currently, Imperial Triumphant are in a battle with Bandcamp over the legitimacy of their page. A hacker is stealing album download revenue from right under the band.)
"Rotted Futures" starts slowly with an eerie orchestration featuring swelling organ chords and dissident horns and woodwinds. Around the 1:30 mark the band comes in with pretty traditional black metal instrumentation. The bass playing from Steve Blanco is a particular highlight here, almost acting like another guitar rather than just a bland backing piece of the rhythm section. The track transitions into an abrasive section with the guitars and bass slipping and sliding across the fretboard. Kenny Grohowski's drumming follows the chaos perfectly with his crazy fills. Close to the end of the track, Imperial go into a breakdown shouting "Behold the future!" The intro section repeats with Zachary Ezrin's bellowing about a bleak approaching future destined for nuclear annihilation.
"Alas, the eclipsing hour
where our fear turns to profit.
Lithium to Hydrogen
in an atomic age of decimation."
The bass work on "Excelsior" steals the show with Blanco going all over the place. The tremolo picked, discordant guitars and frantic drums add to the unsteady nature of the track. The lyrics focus on the perils of luxury in such a huge city like New York. Stating how to achieve any sort of luxury, one must work constantly.
"The dead kiss
of luxury.
Keeps you a slave
Whispering softly:
'Now, get back to work'"
The end of the track sees the band use a recording from what sounds like a crowded mall then slam the listener with industrial noises and synths which bring the guitars and bass back into the mix. Despite this crazy section, "Excelsior" is arguable the most straight forward track on the album.
The band take a jab at the elitism seen in New York with "City Swine." The instrumentation is clean for the first part of the track. The guitars still use strange chord progressions and a chorus effect while the double bass and fills of the drums back them up. The lyrics argue that despite their vast wealth and high status, the elite of New York do nothing by poison the city and leave those less fortunate to rot in their wake.
"You know not of real suffering
True sacrifice in envy of the world
The ugliness of your every breath"
The distortion returns with Ezrin chanting "city swine, blessed swine." Following this pseudo chorus is a stand alone tribal drum section. The guitars go into a heavy chugging, polyrhythmic breakdown backed by a piano that sounds like it's being played by a madman. The track ends with one last stab in the lyrics:
"How very apt
Always ready to take
Ready to waste
And what waste you've become."
A staticy barbershop quartet kicks off "Atomic Age," the most layered song on the album (minus the "Happy Home" cover). The song structure is very math rock-esque with the guitars and bass stopping and starting. It also features modulated organs and strings, East Asian drums and chanting, and samples of planes flying overhead. According to Erzin, the lyrics discuss the differences seen in the U.S. and Japan following the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. One country thrived in victory while the other saw two cities and thousands of citizens vaporized in a instant. The following four decades of the Cold War only added to the growing global fear of complete destruction via atomic weaponry.
"Black spooling sickness
In radiance of a thousand suns
No memory of what is to be
No memory of what we will achieve"
"Transmission to Mercury" features a beautiful, noire jazz introduction that sounds like it was ripped straight out of a smoky New York nightclub or old school detective movie. This intro provides a much needed, short break from the first half of the album. The beauty set in place by the intro is smashed and deformed by the rest of the song as horns wale behind distorted guitars and operatic vocals. The dissident guitar bends, slapped erratic bass, and all-over-the-place drumming opens the title track. Erzin sounds like a madman throughout the song. Spouting lyrics in English and French, the song discusses the population of New York being blinded by it's greatness which leads them to be controlled.
"All order provides
Population complacent
Suffering in black filth
Ce que tout le monde dit doit être vrai (what everyone says must be true)"
"Alphaville" is easily the album's most chaotic and head-spinning track; harsh noise samples, heavy use of a whammy bar on the guitar riffs, lo-fi synths, and Erzin's panned screams of "état de contrôle" at the conclusion. On the official closing track, "The Greater Good," the guitars display a ton of variety. Erzin ping-pongs from death metal chugs, tech death insanity, and open black metal strumming. The same can be said for Blanco's bass playing on this track as well. The lyrics seemingly reflect the concept established on previous track. The now controlled population is always doing what they are told, always looking upward, living an "indoctrinated life" as stated in the lyrics. Harsh shrieks are accompanied by the band chanting "All for the greater good." The track ends with a hauntingly beautiful orchestration that sounds like it is being played on a warped record or broken tape machine. The deluxe version of the album includes two bonus cover tracks. Imperial Triumphant's take on "Experiment" by Voivod and "Happy Home" by The Residents. The band do both covers properly, meaning they put their own spin on each track. "Experiment" is more technical and black metal inspired. Their take of "Happy Home" easily out werids the original; a feat which is hard to do when dealing with such an out-there band like The Residents.
Imperial Triumphant have released a real gem with Alphaville. Evolving their sound from their previous album, New York's leading avant garde black metal band have made their experimental sound more focused while simultaneously keeping listeners guessing with what will come next throughout every song. The trio pulled out all the stops when crafting this album and their hard work definitely shines through. Alphaville is definitely not an album for the feint of heart and does require multiple listens to hear all the more subtle nuances fall into place in the grand narrative. Overall, Alphaville is an excellent album overflowing with insane musicianship and truly thought provoking lyrics about the horrific side of New York City.
Buy the album and merch here
Stream their other albums here (this is their actual Bandcamp page)
Behind the scenes interview with the band here
No comments:
Post a Comment