HERESIE

I was inspired to check out "Heresie" not as much by it's status as an essential RIO album as by the reports of it being perhaps the darkest music ever recorded. Well, it's true that "Heresie" is very dark, perhaps even scary - and that's largely the source of it's weakness. It seems that the band was so immersed in creating the most demented music possible that they left out plenty of elements crucial to making a memorable record. "Heresie" does provide an interesting listen: the compositions are sophisticated, highly dissonant and sometimes atonal. Yet they're also monotonous, sluggish, repetitive and formulaic: introduce a part filled with minor 2nds and tritones, repeat it several times, then move on to a similar part, repeat it again, and so on. Thus, the initially interesting brass section and violin squeals quickly grow tiresome, and your attention begins wandering off only a few minutes into the sprawling 25- minute long opener "La Faulx", which is (unsurprisingly) the album's weakest track, and would've benefited immensely if it had been shortened to about 8 minutes. "Jack the Ripper" is more effective, with enough interesting counterpoint and groovy drums to warrant repeated listens. Best of the three is the last track, which features a number of very catchy moments , although it's advisable that you listen to it separately, as swallowing the album whole would be a serious challenge for even the most patient listener.

I'd still rather put on chamber rock like this than pure avant-garde classical such as Stravinsky or Bartok, simply because my tastes lean more towards more rhythmic music. And I'd still recommend "Heresie" to those seeking challenging and unusual stuff. But don't expect a masterpiece, or you might be considerably disappointed.