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ALBUM REVIEW
- <code> : Resplendent Grotesque
- Tabu Records
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- "Resplendent Grotesque"
is the kind of album that seems a hundred times longer than its paltry 35-minute running
time, and certainly not in that eye-gouging "oh hell, when will this end" sort
of a way. This magical Anglo-Norse amalgamation of talent weaves a web of cresting,
fidgety, deep, progressive black metal, that ably ensnares the listener, pinning them
between silken threads of alternate force and reflection.
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- This sophomore effort is blessed with
the same brazen, off-kilter progressiveness that characterised 2005’s "Noveau
Gloaming", but if anything is more assured, polished and coherent in its attempts
to overturn our preconceptions of how extreme metal should be conceived of, structured and
executed. Every member’s contribution is vital, with Vicotnik’s bass lines
proving almost narrative in their dark and dangerous stalking, and Aort’s evocative,
evolving guitar passages, one moment wistful and twisting in the manner of Emperor, the
next pummelling forcefully with a semi-hardcore spirit that is all British, are incredibly
engaging and interesting. Session drummer Adrian Erlandsson is his usual impeccable self,
punctuating the feeling of tightness that "Resplendent Grotesque" gives
off with a technical and flair-filled performance.
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- When push comes to shove, however,
much of Code’s magic is down to vocalist Kvohst, who not only has a range to die for,
but can perform captivatingly all the way along it. The harsh, throaty, teeth-gnashing of "Possession
in the Medicine" (which has some of Satyricon’s modern punch and a landslide
of momentum) is counterpoised with lamenting but lovely clean vocals on tracks such as "In
the Privacy of Your Own Bones" and "Jesus Fever", with whispers,
shouts and all things in between providing yet more dynamic throughout the album. Kvohst
is a real presence to the listener, a wild-eyed proclaimer of the album’s simple but
mind-snaring lyrics, and ringmaster to the complexity and beauty of the instrumental whirl
beyond.
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- If it were possible to imagine what
the minds behind DHG, Ved Buens Ende and Manes would come up with after a couple of weeks
wandering in a wilderness with Emperor, Ulver and Solefald, discussing post-rock
sensibilities, one might come up with a shimmering yet thunderous image resembling "Resplendent
Grotesque". Black metal is rarely ever truly cerebral or progressive, and
maybe it needs not to be, so that gob-smacking exceptions such as this can bowl us over
all the more. Very special indeed.
- 90/100
- Ellen Simpson
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- www.myspace.com/codeblackmetal
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