The Mass City Of Dis
Monotreme Records Ltd. 2003
By Russell Garwood
Now, this could be entertaining. I have a 250 word lower limit for this review. For City Of Dis, I could reach that, and probably go quite a bit further by just listing the acts that could have influenced this mind-fuck of an album. Fantômas, Mr Bungle and The Dillinger Escape Plan would be in there. Might as well chuck Meshuggah and recent Ephel Duath into the equation. And in terms of genres, grind-core, hardcore? Check. Math rock/punk? Yup theres some of that too. Thrash? Sometimes. Art rock? There are similarities. Jazz-fusion? Just about. In the end, I think Ill just settle for calling this off-kilter avant-garde, minus the pretentiousness that nearly always goes hand-in-hand with said experimentalism. A strong sense of humour is pervasive, making City Of Dis entertaining as well as confusing.
Ok, so, the music. Think complete rhythmic asymmetry; jagged time-changes are numerous, and prove no challenge to the tight band. Guttural growls and fevered shouts occasionally front the songs, while for the rest of the album freeform jazz saxophone noodles over the top. The bass can be funky, yet often synchronizes with the guitar to emphasise certain phrases, and copes well with both quiet and heavy sections. The drums, as you would expect, are exact and well performed, while acoustic guitars are most welcome in occasional relaxed sections.
This all makes for a varied, unusual, deliberately bewildering, and very entertaining sound. It isnt accessible, yet for fans of unusual and original music, it should prove most rewarding. Highly recommended.
8/10
Official The Mass website
Official Monotreme Records website
Monotreme Records Ltd. 2003
By Russell Garwood
Now, this could be entertaining. I have a 250 word lower limit for this review. For City Of Dis, I could reach that, and probably go quite a bit further by just listing the acts that could have influenced this mind-fuck of an album. Fantômas, Mr Bungle and The Dillinger Escape Plan would be in there. Might as well chuck Meshuggah and recent Ephel Duath into the equation. And in terms of genres, grind-core, hardcore? Check. Math rock/punk? Yup theres some of that too. Thrash? Sometimes. Art rock? There are similarities. Jazz-fusion? Just about. In the end, I think Ill just settle for calling this off-kilter avant-garde, minus the pretentiousness that nearly always goes hand-in-hand with said experimentalism. A strong sense of humour is pervasive, making City Of Dis entertaining as well as confusing.
Ok, so, the music. Think complete rhythmic asymmetry; jagged time-changes are numerous, and prove no challenge to the tight band. Guttural growls and fevered shouts occasionally front the songs, while for the rest of the album freeform jazz saxophone noodles over the top. The bass can be funky, yet often synchronizes with the guitar to emphasise certain phrases, and copes well with both quiet and heavy sections. The drums, as you would expect, are exact and well performed, while acoustic guitars are most welcome in occasional relaxed sections.
This all makes for a varied, unusual, deliberately bewildering, and very entertaining sound. It isnt accessible, yet for fans of unusual and original music, it should prove most rewarding. Highly recommended.
8/10
Official The Mass website
Official Monotreme Records website
