Somatoxin

Album Art for Cybervampire

Here we go again. In the words of Uberbyte: Awake, Soma. She lives again, born from my mind. We’re back for more, this time with news from Jon Andre Lundal’s project: Hatemagick‘s Cybervampire.

A very dark album that could probably be described best as Minimalistic, Down-tempo, Dark-Ambient Aggrotech, Cybervampire is Hatemagick‘s debut album, the second being Cybermechanical Antichristian Phenomenon which went out about a month later.

Perhaps I should try comparing Hatemagick‘s work to any other band out there I know, but that would be kind of rough. I must say this album is quite unique to be so minimalistic. Even though the sounds can be understood in the very first run, the sound in general intended for this album is something I haven’t heard before.

Cybervampire kicks in with its title track, perhaps the softest blended track from the whole album. It represents quite well what the album will offer the next forty two minutes: Deep, drowned beats, a low complexity synth arrangement and Hatemagick‘s personal touch: “Disconcerting synths and industrial machine-like beats that rape the soul with passion”. This album is probably one of the roughest I have ever reviewed. I have mixed feelings towards it. I can’t help getting the feel of a Power Noise album, yet I know it’s not by far like it. It shares so much with Power Noise, though, the general atmosphere it creates, the way synths blend along with the beats. Yet a couple of tracks that feature lyrics are so Aggrotech it can’t possibly be categorized as something else. Desire To Obey is a fine example on this. I would’ve loved to hear higher lyrics, they’re just too low to be heard without heavily equalizing.

Halfway through the album comes Daemonic Dream… Now that track is exactly what I was hoping to hear when Cybervampire rushed in. Faster beats plus sampled lyrics filled with anxiety. The Terror EBM – Aggrotech way. Aggressiveness everywhere around. This is were I should note: This album (and specifically this track) is totally not ok to listen while going through traffic. It makes you want to kill everyone around you. Right after Dameonic Dream comes Angels of Death. Two powerful tracks I enjoyed the most. Angels of Death serves another good example of the lyrics thing. They sound good enough, but they’re too low. Hit the 500, 1K and 2K bands all the way up and you’ll understand what I mean. Instead of whispers, they turn into ripped, harsh vocals.

There’s a catch with this though. The hidden lyrics are quite an occult thing, just like Nick Quarm stated on Brutal Resonance, referring to the second Hatemagick album. The positive part of that type of vocals is precisely its great contribution towards making the albums feel darker. As it should be, the album ends gracefully with Stars and Nebullas – a faster paced, less dark track. It keeps the album’s overall feel, yet I found something interesting on this one: Better vocals. Though very short, it’s a very good closing track.

One of those independent projects one should follow, looks like Lundal’s Hatemagick is here to stay. A nice first album that somehow reminds me of the Spanish project Dyoxide‘s first two albums, Hatemagick seems to be filled with more content to come. Certainly, I hope that it won’t share Dioxyde‘s fate and punch with it’s dark sound.