A Swedish industrial tête-? -tête of two interesting artists. Released as a co-production of Fin de Siècle Media & (inhospitable) lab, this mini cd brings together des Esseintes (aka Magnus Sundström – Third Eye, The Protagonist) and Diskrepant (a project of Per Ahlund, which you might know from the ‘The last bleak days’ compilation). This limited release is a nice little gem where the classical industrial spirit is combined with contemporary possibities.
Des Esseintes contributes an epic almost 13-minute piece entitled ‘Scrying/Closure’. This is really one of my favourite tracks of this year. The beginning has a monotonous rhythmic sound, reminding me of a steadily moving forwards steam locomotive. It sounds rather cold and merciless. In the background various things happen, most striking is the use of a church choir, which results in a special effect in combination with the noisy rhythmic base. After a minute of 4/5 things really take off. The machine-like rhythm gets heavier and comes more to the foreground. Noisy layers enhance the atmosphere further. The choir keep singing along. Halfway, if this wasn’t enough, some heavy percussion is added to the mix. Later orchestral elements come around as well. A dense wall of sound is the result. It reminds me a little of the old Third Eye material, but then more powerful. This track goes on and on, like a ruthless machine that’s out of control.
After that exhausting track I need a short break before I can listen to the three Diskrepant tracks. ‘Variety Unknown’ is quite harsh and inaccessible. A lot of distortion, especially on the vocals. Classic power industrial. Sharp metallic sounds and feedback make ‘Grand Mal’ not much friendlier. ‘…and the machines laughed at mankind’ starts more minimal. A tranquil soundscape with voices in the background. But soon infernal industrial sounds and noises enter the factory playground.The track is finished with some slow drones. I would earlier call the harsh music of Diskrepant challenging than enjoyable. Extreme industrial with unorthodox structures.
