| CD REVIEW Impiety |
|
|
Band: Impiety Well, if I would say that Impiety are (one of) my faves from Singapore, than it’s possible you answer with: Hell yeah, of course, which other band you will refer to? But as a matter of fact, Singapore is an extremely important country when it comes to extreme Metal. It is the case right now, but did you know that the triangle Malaysia – Indonesia – Singapore was of undeniable importance during the earliest years? [Japan, Thailand and the Philippines were of a modest importance as well – ivan] Additional info: (besides: damn, I’m getting old because I was in touch with some of these bands back then…) in the earliest years (read: eighties and early nineties) there were many interesting bands from Singapore within the Death / Black / Thrash / Grind-scene; think: Abhorer, Profancer, Eibon, As Sahar, Prophesy, Vrykolakas; and nowadays there are lots of splendid formations acting around too: Infernal Execrator, Wormrot, Istidraj (yeah, still active, hurray), Arbitrary Element, Ethereal (reformed a couple of years ago) and so on. And this brings me to: Impiety, one of the oldest bands from Singapore (they do exists for more than twenty years in mean time!!!), and still one of the most important bands from the Far East. And as mentioned above: (still) one of my favourites. This has not been the case whole the time. Impiety have had a somewhat turbulent past, including a partly-Mexican partnership for several years (with Demonizer- and Hacavitz-members joining Impiety’s ranks for quite a couple of years). And personally –yet this is strictly personal (and subjective)– I didn’t like each release, unfortunately. Never, no not ever, the band completely disappointed me, but at the same time I did not ‘like’ them that much either with each release. Especially the period with the Mexican co-operation (mid-2000’s and the lustrum before) was somewhat f*cked-up for me. But since five years, I guess, Impiety are (one of) my preferred band(s) from the eastern regions again. Throughout the years, this band has always been one of the most extreme ones on Mater Terra, yet the ‘core’ hasn’t been the same whole the time: Death and Black Metal, Thrash, old school versus not-that-old-schoolish, raw versus even rawer and so on. Each album could be different, you never knew what to expect, except for: blasphemy, sleaze, and bloody bestiality! And the same goes for the successor of Terroreign (there were a live- and a mini-album and an EP in mean time as well), called Worshippers Of The Seventh Tyranny: again another approach, yet filled with blood and blasphemy. Worshippers … is, seen from the musical point of view, completely different from any effort from the past. A few times this band around Shyaithan did inject slower parts, but this album, well, THIS IS DOOM! Impiety going Doom, you think?! I was surprised as well, but believe me: after having listened to this album more than a hundred times in mean time (or to be honest: at least a couple of times – I’m a busy reviewer, you see…), I do need to conclude that 1) this certainly is an Impiety-release and 2) this certainly is another (read: a different) Impiety-effort again! It might be comparable to Sabbat’s The Dwelling, qua concept at least, but this album lacks of any furious blast-eruption from the past. No ultra-fast sonic attacks (at least not whole the time), no grindingly skull-breaking terror this time (at least not whole the time, I said), yet (most of the time) the purest Hellhammer-worship! No, not Celtic Frost but Hellhammer, my dear… This album lasts for almost forty minutes and consists of, jawel jawel, one single ‘song’, divided into seven parts. But it is a varying one, with lots of differentiation in tempo, melody (haha, can you imagine – and therefore: excuse me my choice of words) and inspirational source. It opens, after a very short intro, with full-force speed (where’s the Doom?) in the vein of, indeed, "Terroreign", injected with blasting and thrashing USDM-power (Hate Eternal, Nile, Morbid Angel), slowly evolving into majestic and atmospheric, quasi-traditional Doom in the vein of, indeed, Hellhammer (and yes, if you want to, a hint of early Celtic Frost as well, of course) (after a minute or six). "Au secours", like our French fellow-earthlings would say, is there a melody coming up? Sweet guitar lines penetrating an eighties Slow-Mass? And is it funny or to consider/ take seriously, but even the Tom Gabriel Warrior Fisher ‘uh’s' are present, yihaa! And this goes on: Esoteric, Saint Vitus, Thergothon, Goatlord, Incriminated, Mordor, Usurper, Winter and My Dying Bride (!), early Samael (demo – EP – debut album Worship Him), early Satyricon (era Dark Medieval Times, yet without the epic Viking-oriented atmospheres; listen to the part around fourteen minutes, believe me!), and so on, it’s all part of this merciless, deadly game. Even the few (subtle / subtly) keyboard-driven interludia (to float over into another piece of darkening oppression) are magnificently composed (and performed). Hypnotic, universal, basically, pitch-black, gloomy, haunting, oppressing, ominous, monumental, … Recorded in Italy, by the way (Music City Studio), with guest guitar solos by Ophiolatry’s Fabio Zperantio. 90/100 Ivan Tibos. |
