ULTIMATE SENSELESS

Maybe I am starting in the wrong end of the discography here because this is the, so far, latest Misanthrofeel album. Neither is it a good idea to review an album before the artist have returned the interview sheet to me. A big No, No in my books. But in this case, I will take this risk.

This EP reminds me about a scene which was pretty big around 1990 - 94 before it kind of died again. It's name was Industrial Metal and bands like Treponem Pal and Godflesh (today's Jesu) was big there. Grindcore bands like Napalm Death and Carcass was also on it's fringes. The fathers of this scene was off course Swans. Lou Reed's rather dense Metal Machine Music album was also a major influence on this scene too. But somehow, the industrial metal scene died a silent death and disappeared. I have not been listening to any Industrial metal since 1993. This EP and Misanthrofeel represent an a-ha experience and a link up with a part of my brain and memory which has laid dormant since the time I was listening to Godflesh and Treponem Pal.

I am pretty sure most of you, including Misanthrofeel, has now fallen of my train of thoughts and is starting to wonder what this is supposed to mean. Well, nothing happens out of thin air or out of a vacuum. That includes this EP. By accident or by intent; this EP has inherited a lot of the vibrancy from Godflesh's excellent Streetcleaner album and much of the harshness of Napalm Death and Treponem Pal. Take some of the harshness from Blut Aus Nord too and you get this album. Then you paint a picture of an empty factory hall in your mind and let Ultimate Senseless be the soundtrack to your inner images............. and fears.

I do not give a monkey about what others label this EP. This is as industrial metal as industrial metal can be. This is a landscape where all human flesh, philosophy and beings has been obliterated into thin vapor. This is metal against metal. There is human warmth in some of the stuff here and all five tracks has good melody lines in the middle of this flesh pounding industrial vision.

Yes, the sound is harsh. But there is also flowers in the middle of all the steel. Listen to the final minute of Ocean where even a couple of roses is raising it's heads through the concrete floor. Doodah also have traces of organic material. But most of this EP is metal against metal. The quality, and I have finally arrived to the whole point of writing a review, is pretty good throughout. I am a returning "customer" to this scene so my mind is not that sharp as it once was. But I like what I hear. This EP is worth checking out. But be prepared for some shocks because this type of music does not have any clever time changes and solos. Just some harsh droning.

Welcome to the rebirth of industrial metal.

My second taste of Misanthrofeel's music after Leisurely, and I must say I prefer this one. Like Leisurely, this album has a dark sound and is more of a moodsetting thing rather than your traditional music. However, I find the sound here is more mature and less one-dimensional. The darkness is still there, and the brilliant moodsetting drumming is still there, but it sounds much more organized, well done, and displays more influences which I think is just what the music needed. Here and there, there are even psychedelia influences (or that may just be me) which I found were great.

Still, the majority of the EP is pure dark, doomy metal. But has a bit more diversity, maturity, and overall moodsetting quality then the Leisurely EP. For that, I give it 4 stars.

'Ultimate Senseless' - Misanthrofeel (4/10)

A link in a long line of EPs produced by the man behind the pseudonym of Misanthrofeel, 'Ultimate Senseless' is a visible return to the project's roots as a dreary industrial metal act. While the preceding EP 'Leisurely' brought a new sound to the table (in the vein of post-doom metal,) this one feels a bit too much like a b-sides compilation from Misanthrofeel's first full-length album 'Sampleria.'

While the compositions may be on par to some extent, with the majority of Misanthrofeel's releases, this one-man band is prone to reinventing itself with each new session. 'Ultimate Senseless' on the other hand, recalls back to the earliest material; before any of the ethnic or doom sounds were used overtly. While the debut album 'Sampleria' is (to date) my favourite release from Misanthrofeel and it impressed me with alot of it's extended compositions, 'Ultimate Senseless' feels like it focuses on the weaker portions of the debut; the shorter, heavier and less involving tracks.

In terms of production, things feel a bit off here. While all of the music here (and all other releases by this act) is electronically produced and uses artificial software instruments, it feels like there is a bit too much of a noisy, crackled edge to this that can't be heard on any other album. Perhaps it is due to an effort to make this heavier and more abrasive sounding, but the guitar emulation can be akin to radio static at times.

To this EP's benefit however, the atmospheric closer to 'Ultimate Senseless,' 'Ocean' has to be one of my favourite tracks that Misanthrofeel has ever done. It is a very gentle piece and doesn't try to be needlessly heavy. It works beautifully well, and hopefully Misanthrofeel can release more laid-back, yet purposeful music like this in the future. For the moment however, 'Ultimate Senseless' does not retain the sort of impact that better releases from Misanthrofeel have had for me.