| CD REVIEW Jumalhämärä |
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Band: Jumalhämärä I have to be honest: I hadn’t heard about Jumalhämärä before (nor did I know of the existence of Ahdistuksen Aihio, honestly). And that’s a pity, because this Finnish band did release some possibly interesting material in the past. The band was active at the end of the nineties and early 2000’s - they were on Northern Sound Records’ rooster - then it went silent for a while, and in 2007 Hammer Of Hate did release the official mini-album Slaughter The Messenger. And in case Jumalhämärä’s stuff was as interesting as this new album seems to be, it explains my sadness. Resignaatio, meaning “submission”, has duration of forty minutes, and brings a morbid, somewhat chaotic form of Black Metal. This noisy approach goes for both sound and performance: no-nonsense, lacking of over-produced tunes, basic and nihilistic …the most tasteful way, isn’t it? The somewhat discordant, dissonant tracks are bizarre if you compare the main ingredients: utter brutality and shamanistic darkness versus melodious adultery. This “snowy” material is raw, sleazy and unpolished, yet with a well-thought, yes, an intelligent form of old-fashioned primitivism – not the would-be kind, the “look at me, I am so evil” image by all those fake combos lately. Yes, the ‘average’ (Black) Metal fan won’t get any satisfaction right here. And yes, the open-minded and dark-minded souls among us (read: the sickest human, or non-human, entities on Planet Earzzz) will undergo a spiritual and audible orgasm, time after time, when listening to these sick / sickened / sickening and hateful hymns. Hail! Even though there’s a clear line amongst the tracks, I need to mention the variation on additional surpluses – intros, intermezzos, the addition of samples, harmonious or haunting chants, and so on… And in spite of the primitive approach, a (not always that) subtle touch of progressive visionarism or Post-mentality puts Jumalhämärä’s sonic efforts on a very high level within the most extreme/ extremists’ regions. If I wasn’t aware of the band’s origins, I would/ could/ should swear it was a formation from Ukraine, the Baltic countries or Romania, by the way… Says something??? I feel privileged, dear Ahdistuksen Aihio-crew, being allowed to undergo this nice-smelling shit. Breathe it in with painful pleasure… 89/100 Ivan Tibos. |
