VRRESTO

Upon first hearing, this album was just too much. What happened to old Ruins? You know...the music that I thought I could almost follow, with those amazing licks, heavy riffs, and seriously hilarious operatic vocals? What I found on this album, outside of the opener "Snare", which was a great move by Yoshida, was an impossibly complex conundrum simply too difficult for my brain to penetrate. Given time, though, and afterseeing a few shows with this new, even faster bassist Hisashi Sasaki, I began to get it. To me, Vrresto is the sound of some serious sound exploration. It may not be the most concise album, and perhaps not as focused as the album that follows it (Pallaschtom), but for those committed to exploring it, it yeilds some great moments. It has a somewhat jazzy feel, and features a wide variety of sounds...the only thing lush enough to be comparable in Ruins discography at its time of release was Burning Stone, yet Vrresto expanded on that palette with up-to-date technology that provides strange string effets, here and there, some intense guitar-solo-type wailing, and what sounds like a vibraphone at one point. Also there are some crazy effects on the bass at some points that make it sound sped-up/slowed-down simultaneously. Whoah. The vocals are brilliant as usual, with more extensive use of harmony and weird mouth sounds than before. This one's an intense journey. "Laipthcig" and "Vrresto" are the standout tracks, but the album has extensive memorable passages throughout...it's just that it tends to ebb and flow like some type of ocean wave rather than a clear procession of separate tunes.

Prepare for the assault...

I don't want the headline to be misleading. This is very much Ruins haha. Rhythmic intensity. Crazed, fun and tribal vocals and chanting. This all, of course, can be a lot, but this is part of the Ruins experience.

Some songs, frankly, don't hit. Some songs hit half the time. But throughout, really, there is that magic (on most tracks). The bassist at this time, Hisashi Sasaki, is excellent. Awesome riffage and licks, oft using fuzz tone to really beef it up (my mind goes to Hugh HOPPER).

Some personal highlights, in order of appearance: the latter half of "Warrido", the wild but brief "Dagdad", "Kpaligoth", the ending of "Zumn-Vigo", "Savollodix", "Quopern" (I would say the most memorable bass riff on the album), the middle section till the end of "Larikoschodel" (the most unique sounds utilized), and the latter half of "Vrresto".

Admittedly as I'm now on my 11th short review of a Ruins album, I'm running out of different ways to describe their bonkers take on music. But while their early albums were akin to recording the sound of throwing a drum kit and guitars down a long flight of stairs, there is an evolution. Make no mistake, Vrresto is complex to the extreme and is far from accessible to the masses, however there is a high level of technical skill, and dare I say it, refinement, despite the jarring wall of noise. It's Avant-Garde, RIO, Zeuhl, and a little jazzy. For a semi-accessible example of the latter, as well as that tight technical refinement and a bit of craziness, have a listen to the second half of Kpaligoth. A track by track review would be a serious feat, instead I'll just suggest listening to the section of Quopern, Laipthcig and Jarragoh as a good sampler.