CUATRO VISIONES

I'm not sure how I missed this 2011 release but i'm certainly glad I eventually heard about it. ARTERIA are from Mexico and feature the extraordinary talents of Juan Carlos Ruiz who wrote all of the compositions and did all of the arrangements. He was the bassoon player in the band NAZCA and eventually went on to another band before arriving here with ARTERIA. I think they were smart bringing in a Jazz drummer by the name of Victor Baldovinos who plays with ICONOCLASTA. We also get a cello player, a guitarist and Tizok who adds electronic percussion along with programming. Man there is so much depth and power to this recording that it reminds me of UNIVERS ZERO at their darkest and most intense moments.

"La Sentencia" opens with cello that slices away as a full sound kicks in with bassoon. This is quite heavy and check out the drum work. Some insane cello that is very avant. A dark and eerie calm arrives 2 minutes in then it starts to build with these alarming sounds. Great track! "Fragmentos Cortados" has a soundscape that seems to pulsate, again it's quite dark and heavy. Piano 1 1/2 minutes but there's so much going on here. Check out the bassoon after 3 minutes to the end. "Lo Inexistente" opens with piano and a beat along with those dark mechanical sounds. Bassoon replaces the piano but they will alternate. Guitar to the fore after a minute. It's brighter after 2 minutes as the drums and piano pulsate with bassoon and guitar playing over top. Back to the dark atmosphere a minute later. The guitar is crying out late. "Cuatro Visiones" features plenty of tempo shifts throughout and check out the bassoon/cello section after 2 minutes. Nice bass lines and guitar follow. After 3 1/2 minutes the cello cries out as the beat becomes slow and emphatic. Some crazy cello work on this one.

"Partes En Una Botelia" opens with these sounds that cry out over and over again as we get this solemn beat. Again it's dark and we get a change before 2 minutes as it brightens and almost becomes waltz-like. It changes again before the 4 minute mark as drums, piano and bassoon take over. The guitar is ridiculous here, very avant sounding. "Marcha Funebre" has this haunting beat as scary sounds join in. This is like a soundtrack to a horror movie. The bassoon sounds amazing when it joins in, cello helps out as well. Love this section. The pace does pick up in this bizarre piece. "Lo Que Nos Esta Muerro" is another haunting soundscape, very eerie and dark as the piano pulsates as the bassoon joins in. The guitar is like nails on a chalk-board as it screeches and wails. A change halfway through as the drums standout and some light shines in. "Mi Pulso" is uptempo with some suspence thrown in. The guitar is insane. Love the beat with bassoon and cello after a couple of minutes. Intense. "El Hijo De Bernando" has an almost waltz-like rhythm that stops and starts for over a minute then it settles in somewhat. Some powerful guitar expressions follow. So freaking good. He is ripping it up here then it ends like it began. "Un'Lamento Y Dos Danzas" is an amazing closing track. A dark beauty with some killer cello in it. More of that avant guitar then back to the cello to end it.

A must for fans of dark music like "Heresie" and other classics in the same vein. An amazing trip.