Phlebotomized - Immense Intense Suspense / Skycontact

By Hera Vidal. Phlebotomized is one of those cult bands that disappeared during the late 90’s, only to resurface 16 years later. Their music is what I can only describe as avant-garde, reminding me a lot of Ven Buens Ende and their classic Written in Waters.

By Hera Vidal.

Cover art by Patrick Van Der Zee

Phlebotomized is one of those cult bands that disappeared during the late 90’s, only to resurface 16 years later. Their music is what I can only describe as avant-garde, reminding me a lot of Ven Buens Ende and their classic Written in Waters. However, unlike Ven Buens Ende, Phlebotomized is much more approachable, less chaotic (to an extent), and much more enjoyable. While researching this band and album(s), I saw comparisons between Phlebotomized and Amorphis, and even listened to Tales from the Thousand Lakes to see whether the album had the same sound. I would consider Phlebotomized to be Amorphis’s more flamboyant Dutch cousin – they run in the same sonic circles, but Phlebotomized likes to experiment.

Now, Immense Intense Suspense / Skycontact is actually a compilation of their classic albums, Immense Intense Suspense, released in 1994, and Skycontact, released in 1997. Because this is two albums in one, I will be focusing on one album at a time before giving my closing remarks on this compilation.

Of the two, Immense Intense Suspense is the most conventional – that is, it follows the true-and-tried of death-doom, but it does have some quirks to its music including touches of tech death in the guitar, acoustic tones used sparingly throughout the album, and an avant-garde vibe that comes out through the usage of keyboards. What makes the music work is actually the usage of a violin. There are moments were the main focus of the music is a heavy, sludgy guitar that really brings out the death metal. It can be heard throughout the album, warring with the violin, creating an intense wall of sound that doesn’t let up even during the quiet parts of the album. In fact, one can say that the album is focused around the violin, making sure it shines when it can. Throughout the album there's a suspense coming from not knowing what to expect, as it surprises you at every turn. It definitely sounds a lot different than what was available at the time, but, nowadays, you can find similar surprises in album from say, Oranssi Pazuzu or A Forest of Stars.

Skycontact, on the other hand, decided to throw much of the conventional metal out the window and go full avant-garde. Unlike the non-linear musical structure and lyricism that was used in Immense, Phlebotomized decided to fully embrace their quirky soundscape and their penchant for experimentation, forgoing the violin for the usage of synthesizers and fuzzy guitars. This leads to a cohesive structure of music that, while it can go from one place to another rather quickly, can still follow a set theme. One can claim that Skycontact is a full descent into madness and dreams, dense in its complexity and atmospheric in vocal usage. If Immense is the outside world, then Skycontact is Wonderland. The dreamlike atmosphere of this album is something to behold, fully embracing their quirks without losing all of their previous death-doom sound (see the delightfully titled “I Lost My Cookies in the Disco”).

All in all, Immense Intense Suspense / Skycontact is a compilation album that provides ready access to a band’s discography that is highly niche and would need someone else to direct you to it. Depending on whom you ask, either album is polarizing yet accessible. Personally, of the two, I would suggest starting with Skycontact first, as I think it is the most accessible and enjoyable of the two. Given my penchant for progressive metal, that side of the compilation was easier to take in. Overall, the compilation is a great introduction into the avant-garde, and I fully recommend it to those who enjoy a little weird in their metal.

[Note: track 1-7 is Immense Intense Suspense. Track 8-13 is Skycontact.]

Gorguts - Pleiades' Dust

By Justin C. What we're faced with here is Pleiades' Dust, a 33-minute-long metal song/EP about the rise and fall of the House of Wisdom, a library in Baghdad from the 9th through 13th centuries. The House of Wisdom served as a then-unparalleled center of learning and intellectual pursuit

By Justin C.

Cover art by Zbigniew Bielak

What we're faced with here is Pleiades' Dust, a 33-minute-long metal song/EP about the rise and fall of the House of Wisdom, a library in Baghdad from the 9th through 13th centuries. The House of Wisdom served as a then-unparalleled center of learning and intellectual pursuit during a time that was otherwise considered the Dark Ages, after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. I know what you're thinking--most bands could easily get lost in a 8-minute song about Cthulhu, let alone 33 minutes about the Islamic Golden Age, so this will probably be a formless mess of overly long interludes and a guitarist grinding pointlessly away on the most Middle Eastern-sounding scale he knows. But this isn't most bands. This is Gorguts.

Luc Lemay, 2014. Photo by Metal Chris

As with Colored Sands, Luc Lemay is joined by Colin Marston and Kevin Hufnagel (both of Dysrhythmia and many others) along with new-to-Gorguts drummer Patrice Hamelin. And as before, these musicians "are comfortable with dissonance in the same way most musicians are comfortable with a C major scale," to quote a wise source (me). Check out the first big entrance at around 0:56. Even when the chords resolve, they're still vibrating with angry dissonance. There's no shortage of what you'd hope for here: slithery bass lines, intertwined guitar lines, and a heady mix of fury and quieter moments.

Kevin Hufnagel, 2014. Photo by Metal Chris

Although this is technically one song, the piece is separated into movements (or "chapters"), and even without reading the lyrics, it's pretty easy to tell how one chapter flows to the next. This is composed, orchestrated music, not a musical blob of self-indulgence. For example, there's no mistaking the opener of Chapter II, "Wandering Times," right after the 4:00 mark. The clear change in direction is signaled by Lemay's roar and the interplay between the thundering main riff and underlying line, and it's purely electrifying. In Chapter V, "Compendiums," Lemay even makes translation and transcription of ancient texts sound brutal.

Colin Marston, 2014. Photo by Metal Chris

But beyond the heaviness, this song/EP also strikes as perfect a balance between heavy and light, tension and release, as I can recall hearing in any recent metal album. The changes in textures, emotions, and pure cerebral power are astonishing. I won't lie--this EP takes a bit more time to digest and absorb than most fare--possibly even more than Colored Sands required. But let's face it--if you want just a solid half hour slab of head banging death metal, you're spoiled for choices. You don't go to Gorguts for that because they deliver so much more.

"With no internet, this record would not exist" A conversation with Luc Lemay from Gorguts

By Justin C. Luc Lemay of Gorguts was kind enough to talk to me for a while about the recording process of Colored Sands, what it was like to work with other hugely talented musicians, and how they made it work

By Justin C.

Luc Lemay of Gorguts was kind enough to talk to me for a while about the recording process of Colored Sands, what it was like to work with other hugely talented musicians, and how they made it work without them all being in the same geographical place. I also (lamely) try to convince him to make guest spots on many other albums.

Artwork by Martin Lacroix

First, congrats on creating a remarkable piece of music with this album.

Thank you very much. That was a labor of love.

When you first started writing this, did you have any concerns about working with musicians who weren’t located in the same place as you?

Actually, from square one, when I decided to get another Gorguts record done, I had John [Longstreth] and Colin [Marston] in mind right away, and it was Big Steeve [Hurdle] that told me about them... Steve wanted to be a part of the project, but back then we were already doing Negativa together, and we’d done Obscura together, and I wanted to have a different experience. Not that the experience was not nice or fulfilling with Big Steeve, but since it was possible for me to live something new and have a different experience, I wanted to have all new people. Then Big Steeve told me, “You really gotta check this guitar player out,” talking about Kevin [Hufnagel]. It’s two-for-one in the sense that he already plays with Colin, so everything should be easier, schedule-wise. Then we went to his place and he showed me a couple videos of Dysrhythmia live, and I was like, “Holy smoke!” I was blown away by Kevin’s playing, so right away, I really wanted to have him in the picture. So then I e-mailed everybody on their respective MySpace’s, and everybody said yes. It was like it was meant to happen with those people.


It’s nice to get 100% agreement right from the start.

Exactly. It’s not like I had to look around for a guitar player or a drummer for a month or two. It really clicked, and I really wanted them to be in the picture. I was a big fan of John’s playing on Dim Mak’s Knives of Ice, because I was a big fan of that record. And Colin, I was totally impressed by his Warr guitar playing, and I said to myself if this guy has the ambition to play those kind of instruments, I’m sure it’s going to work out well on the creative aspect for making a record.

So how did the writing process work? Did you exchange files?

Yeah, the way it worked is that, with me living in Canada, I’d write, say, a whole song by myself. And from there, I’d write all the riffs in the right order that they appear in the song, and I’d write them in tablature... I’d send Kevin, Colin, and John an mp3 of the song, just me playing along with a click, and then there would be the manuscript for the music... For a couple of songs, I also did a structural graphic, like we would do in analysis class, back when I was studying composition.

Then, first thing I knew, a month later, Colin would write me back and he would have written the whole bass line over the music. Then Kevin would send me the track with the bass line and all his guitar over my track of music. I gave them complete freedom to write whatever they wanted, unless they did something that didn’t work with the music or didn’t fit with the aesthetic of the music, but they just nailed it every time. We barely changed a note here and there. It was like, first draft, bulls-eye. They were fans of the band before, so they understood the aesthetic of the band, but the thing is, they wrote bass and guitar tracks in the Gorguts aesthetic in the way that they see it. As I always give as an example, if you have three people and ask them to draw a table on a piece of paper, you’re going to recognize the object right away, but everybody’s going to draw a table in their own perspective. If you asked me, for example, to write a riff in the style of Slayer, then I’d do it my way. You could recognize the aesthetic there, but that doesn’t mean my friend is going to do it the same way as I, so that’s how it happened with them writing. They surprised me every time. That’s important when you have a project with people, you need to be surprised by them, you need to be inspired by them. And that’s the case with these musicians.


Thinking about Dysrhythmia, they’re certainly well within the genre sphere of Gorguts, but it would certainly take a very subtle touch to not only bring their own personal piece to it, but to also respect what you’ve already accomplished with the band.

Totally.

Were you surprised at all that you were so close to the same page right off?

Taking a step back, totally, because you can have an amazing player, but you’ll never get along together. You need to have a good relationship to share ideas. In life, it’s not always easy to click with people, you know. The older we get, we know what we want, and it’s like, “Well, I love the way he plays, but personality-wise maybe it’s not my thing.” It wasn’t the case...it was just perfect with everybody. It was smooth sailing. It was awesome to share ideas, and we weren’t at the point where we completed each other’s sentences, but almost! They’re amazing people, and great personalities, and that’s very important for me as well. It’s not all about the music...I need to have fun. If I don’t have any fun, then forget it. I’ll just be home, and I’ll write all the stuff myself.

Did you feel like anything was lost in the writing process because you weren’t eyeballing each other in a room?

Not at all. All the records I made previously were made collectively, like being in the same room in the same time. For instance, Obscura, the way we wrote that, Steve [Cloutier], Steeve, and I would spend a week in our own corners coming up with riffs. The week after, we’d get together on a Monday, and we’d jam back then 5 or 6 days a week, all afternoon, having dinner together and jamming in the evening as well. Every song on Obscura, besides “Rapturous Grief,” took 2 days to write.


But this time around, having them living in NYC and me in Canada, we don’t hear in the music that it wasn’t written with us in the same room. Of course, we tweaked little arrangements. For instance, I had an idea for a drumbeat, and John and I got together one-on-one for a couple songs to get the drums together. Once we got together as a four piece, we’d play a song with all the string section together, and Colin would have one line sticking out that was very strong, and we’d say, “Oh, what about John doubling this line to underline it?” That’s the kind of tweaking we did together, but other than that, we didn’t have to change a melodic line in the music. We just made the arrangements more subtle. From the first draft, it was boom--bullseye.

You can definitely hear that. In a way, I wonder if it helped a little with that setup, because the music is so intricate. Everyone could have a little private time to think about what they wanted.

Exactly. Back in Negativa, Big Steeve was a big fan of improvisation, and me, I just hate improvisation. Never liked it. I don’t like having three people stare at me while I’m in my head with ideas and researching a theme. I like more being in my own shell, thinking about stuff, and writing, like someone would do writing a book. That’s the way I like. Not that I don’t like working on music collectively, but we need to have 95% of the substance there. Other than that, improvisation...it’s not my cup of tea.

Do you think this is the future? Maybe we’ll get more world-wide collaborations?

Maybe. It’s a personality thing as well. Maybe some like to have on-the-spot collective, “Let’s work on a song from scratch to finish,” but for me, it was perfect. I’m a very busy person, and Colin is super busy, Kevin as well. They each have three or four bands each. John is the same, he tours a lot with Origin... But with no internet, this record would not exist.


Might we see you guesting on any Krallice or Vaura records?

Maybe. [Laughs.] Or maybe I can sing on a Dysrhythmia song or a Behold the Arctopus song.

Thank you so much for your time, I really appreciate it.

Thank you, thanks for the interview. I couldn’t be more thankful for the press and all the people so far and the fans I’ve briefly met being on the road for two weeks. I couldn’t be more thankful for the response to the music. I’m so happy. So happy. It’s the only word I can find! [Laughs.]

All photos are from the Gorguts gallery, except for the live photo of John Longstreth which was taken by Ross Grady.

Gorguts - Colored Sands

Written by Justin C.

Artwork by Martin Lacroix

It's been a good year for comebacks. Byzantine and Misery Signals, just to name two, returned after 5-year hiatuses to deliver solid, crowd-funded new albums. But 5 years is really a drop in the bucket compared to Gorguts, who hasn't released a studio album since 2001's From Wisdom to Hate. With 12 years gone and only one original member, mastermind and vocalist Luc Lemay, what kind of beast do we get with Colored Sands?

From Maryland Deathfest VIII. Photo by Distortionplus.

First, check out the new line up, none of whom are musical slouches: Colin Marston (Krallice and Dysrhythmia) handles the bass, Kevin Hufnagel (Dysrhythmia, Vaura) plays guitar, and John Longstreth (Origin, Dim Mak, and many others) is on drums. One could reasonably wonder if this new album would just be Dysrhythmia with vocals added, but there's no denying the sonic similarities between From Wisdom to Hate and Colored Sands, in spite of the 12-year gap. I think that's a testament both to Luc Lemay's vision and his new bandmates' respect for what's already been achieved. That core Gorguttian sound is here in spades: The musicians are comfortable with dissonance in the same way most musicians are comfortable with a C major scale, the rhythms are complex and ever-shifting, and song structures are anything but run of the mill.

From Maryland Deathfest VIII. Photo by Metal Chris.

Those elements were fully present in their past albums, but that's not to say there's been no evolution. This album sounds lush in a way that I don't hear in their previous work. That's probably in part to the excellent production, but I think it's also a function of the song writing. Check out the chiming, eerie guitar lines in the album opener "Le toit du monde" ("Top of the World"). It's a sound they return to throughout the album, and it's one layer among many that makes this album sound so rich. The guitar and bass twist around each other, sometimes trading roles of melody and rhythm between each other. The drums shift easily between delicate minimalism and full-on blasts. And then there's the sheer beauty. The title track, which is one of my personal favorites, starts with a haunting and complex melody before opening up into a full roar, with grinding riffs made up of chords so harsh that just writing them down would have gotten you burned at the stake during the Middle Ages. Do you want even more strangeness in your death metal? Well, "The Battle of Chamdo" is a chamber music piece played by a string quartet, and perhaps the weirdest thing about it is that it doesn't sound at all out of place on this album. (In a recent interview, Luc Lemay mentions that he's written a violin sonata he'd like to see recorded.)

From Maryland Deathfest VIII. Photo by Carmelo Española.

You often see Gorguts described as technical death metal, but to be honest, that's far too reductive. This isn't an album full of blazing displays of technicality, even though the musicians are more than capable of it. Even calling it avant garde doesn't make a lot of sense, because to me, that phrase has taken on the connotation of "weird for the sake of being weird." Colored Sands has a sound that's easy to get close to, in spite of the wild sounds coming out of it. It's not simplistic by any means, but the complexity of it goes far beyond how many notes or polyrhythms somebody can stuff into one track. I often find that technical death metal or avant garde music in general requires a lot of effort. With the best of music, the effort is worth it, but it can also be tiring. But with Colored Sands, all I know is that as soon as I finish listening to it, I want to hear it again immediately.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]