Wednesday, May 6, 2009

dødheimsgard - supervillain outcast (2007)


Although they started out as a black metal band in 1994, by the release of Supervillain Outcast in 2006, Dødheimsgard (or DHG) had morphed into something very strange and hard to label. A good point of comparison might be Ministry, given the predominance of dancey industrial tempos. But instead of starting out as a pop group and morphing into a metal band, Dødheimsgard took the opposite path. That's not to say that this is pop- its still very much metal- but its really, really strange metal. Blastbeats, harsh vocals and down-tuned guitars are present, but in odd time signatures and joined by electronic squeals and occasional choral singing. Songs lurch from point to point, thrashing at one time, grooving at another. I get the sense that the band has a fairly healthy sense of humor- the name of the record alone indicates so. I also get the feeling of confidence that older, technically experienced bands have- despite the oddness of the record, it doesn't sound like they had any doubt about what they were creating. That fact becomes even more impressive when you consider that the last album they released before this one had come out seven years prior. I don't know if "true" metalheads care for this one much, but personally I think this is one of the best and most unique metal albums I've heard in the last few years.

Dødheimsgard - The Snuff Dreams Are Made Of
Dødheimsgard - Apocalypticism

2 comments:

  1. this looks right up my alley, does it have a lot of proggy tendencies?? also it sounds like it might have a similar sound to sigh's imaginary sonicscape.

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  2. yeah, its super proggy and mathy. industrial metal in the post IDM age.

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