HYDEROMASTGRONINGEM

Japan's answer to the question "What does it sound like if you throw a three-tier toolbox down a steep hill?" continue their chaotic work, but what's most interesting about this album is there is quite a lot of structure to the chaos if you pick it apart enough. The opening title track hints at it with an avant-garde instrumental, but then you forget about it immediately with Brixon Varromiks essentially just the duo attempting to destroy their respective instruments through over-use accompanied by some random shrieking and noises for a couple of minutes. It breaks into the calmer (relatively speaking) and menacing side of Ruins' offerings, again with some nonsensical vocals, but again more avant-garde than just noise and appreciatively complex as the tempo rises and falls. There's actually passages of this which make me think they've been asked to do Dream Theater's Dance of Eternity, but Zeuhl. Bold call probably. It's a grower, without the first two minutes I might even go as far as saying I liked it. After a 33 second track of guitar and wailing, we're then treated to two minutes of guitar and wailing with added drums and growling in Economic Mond Possa. Pig Brag Crak is another of the semi-accessible avant-garde offerings, while if you want a track bouncing between death metal growling and high pitched wailing, Prrifth is for you. Some pretty nifty guitar at the end of that tracks. For most of the rest of the short tracks I'd be copy and pasting something from the above mix of styles. Instead I'll just pick out two tracks which are at the more accessible end of things (again, relatively speaking) with some sections of rhythm or at least avant-garde style rather than utter chaos. Gravestone is probably the pick of the bunch and shows the pair have musical talent rather than just smashing a room to bits and calling it music. Stone Eater also not bad. It does have the feel of something that would grow on me with repeat listens, but I can't bring myself to do that just yet!