Finland's UNKIND unleash a salvo of dark, ominous hardcore/punk on their Relapse debut Harhakuvat. More than just orthodox d-beat/crust, UNKIND distill dystopian frustrations and anxieties, and explore deeper shades of darkness within ominous, desolate dirges. Harhakuvat comes direct from the gut, with the urgency and true sense of purpose that hardcore/punk rock was built upon.
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Crust punk and d-beat have made an interesting and exciting evolution since Discharge's revolutionary 90-second beatdowns on Hear Nothing, See Nothing, Say Nothing. Norwegian bruisers Disfear kept the crusty flame alive and burning throughout the '90s and '00s, while in the United States, Black Breath blended d-beat with old school thrash riffs, and Trap Them lent the genre an extra shot of metalcore intensity. And while the three-decade legacy of the genre has seen a steady, primarily simple focus on speed and volume, Finland's Unkind has taken great steps to lend crust punk some extra texture and depth on their Relapse debut, Harhakuvat.
ВідповістиВидалитиThe first thing you hear on Harhakuvat is not, in fact, sprint-paced drums nor drop-d guitar riffs. Rather, a spooky, ethereal piano opens the title track, setting a strangely eerie stage for the whirlwind of high-energy metal to come. And once it does, it's as rowdy and fun as crust punk gets, if significantly more nuanced and layered. "Kaivannot" wastes no time in getting to the raging power chords and throaty growls, but the song's final minute reveals something both highly surprising and delightful: a horn section. The band's two guitarists intertwine minor key harmonies in the highly melody-focused highlight "Laumasielut," while the gigantic, seven-minute "Johtajat ja uhrit" is the closest thing the album has to a ballad, opening with acoustic guitars and ominous synth before escalating into a surprisingly catchy and crunchy chorus.
To call that Unkind purely a crust punk band would not only be disingenuous, it's actually only a part of an incredibly broad palate that the band stretches across sludge metal, hardcore and the occasional doom dirge. That one of the album's most interesting tracks, "Läsnä," is actually a melodramatic instrumental with nothing resembling a d-beat in sight, speaks volumes about the kind of exploration the band indulges in on Harhakuvat. As an exercise in raw, bruising hardcore, Harhakuvat is a blast, but the deeper into the band's heavily layered arrangements one goes, the more interesting this mosh pit truly gets.
http://www.treblezine.com/reviews/3855-Unkind_Harhakuvat.html
Written by Jeremy Witt
ВідповістиВидалитиPublished on 8/21/2011 http://www.metalreview.com/reviews/6333/unkind-harhakuvat
Finland’s Unkind makes their Stateside debut with their fifth record, Harhakuvat, released on Relapse. Akin to crusty d-beat acts Tragedy and Wolfbrigade, with a more than hefty dash of Neurosis, Unkind shines when channeling the first two and falls prey to post-metal meandering when following the latter. Of course, on paper, such a pairing offers a wealth of possibility, but on wax / plastic / in digital ones-and-zeros, Unkind’s formula unfortunately has a tendency to push the band into the cracks between the two styles. As such, Harhakuvat is neither as fierce nor absolutely devastating as a pure d-beat record because it spends half its time being neither as epic nor absolutely devastating as the best in sludge / post-metal.
But in the interest of full-disclosure, there’s something of a personal bias here, and I admit it: I love some d-beat pummeling and can tolerate endlessly interchangeable bands in that regard, but I’ve grown bored as hell with the post-Neurosis post-metal parade. Slow trudging tempos, allegedly “crushing” crashing chords, chiming cleans and a semi-cinematic atmosphere – all of that was brilliant a decade ago, or even a half-decade back, but nowadays, it’s played out and I’ve moved on. Regrettably, in their post / sludge moments, Unkind doesn’t manage to rise above the style’s inherent tendency to become background music, and I find myself drifting away in the bad way. None of the band’s post-metal is awful or even poorly executed – just none of it rises above any similar bands and records that came before, and thus, nothing truly transcends.
When Unkind kicks into full-on hardcore mode, they’re far better at what they do – and in their one moment of a true blending of their disparate attacks, they do manage to bring a post-metal melodic sensibility to their d-beat, such that their punk isn’t strictly Anti-Cimex / Discharge three decades later. In these punk portions, the guitars often intertwine ringing melodies above the fray, above the typical pounding drums and power-chord chunk. Such a melodic twist gives Harhakuvat’s songs a more open feel, and this is the one time in which Unkind truly makes great use of post-metal’s inherent expansive epic quality. The problem is simply that those d-beat-plus-melody moments encompass only half the record, with the other half struggles beneath its wandering Pelican-isms. “Johtajat Ja Uhrit” (which translates to “Leaders And Victims”) rides an admittedly grand clean-guitar riff into the album’s most post moment, chiming chords and that cyclical riff beneath sampled excerpts from a speech given by British politician Sir Gerald Kaufman decrying Israel’s actions against Palestinians in Gaza.
A few years back, I ran across Denmark’s The Psyke Project, an outfit that combines hardcore and post-metal in a much more crushing fashion. Unkind shares a similar formula, but doesn’t manage to make their Neur-Isis moments as heavy as either of those bands (or as heavy as The Psyke Project). In its best moments, Harhavukat still offers some ripping d-beat and a few sludge-tempo moments that don’t stall out. Ultimately, the record splits the difference between the two styles it embraces, diluting its own power and coming up strongest on neither side.
http://www.metalreview.com/reviews/6333/unkind-harhakuvat
Unkind are a Finnish hardcore band freshly signed to Relapse; they are, however, by no means green. Unkind have released four full-length albums prior to this release, as well as several vinyl-only EPs. Harhakuvat is their fifth full-length album, and it shows.
ВідповістиВидалитиUnkind are practiced, tight, confident in their aesthetic and clear in the direction of their aggression. Their solid identity was fully formed before a label took them on, and the result is a very strong North American debut.
All the songs on Harhakuvat are in Finnish, which is one of the album’s strengths. The vocals are an instrument, urgent and powerful, equal parts pleading and threatening. Unkind are more melodic than a lot of hardcore, which gives their energy some emotional texture. Harukhavut is a moving album.
Unkind are most successful when they give their music weight, drawing out the guitar tones like saltwater taffy being stretched — trying to chew on this music will rip your teeth out. When these sludgy passages retain their energy and stay rooted in emotional authenticity, it’s a winning combination.
“Johtajat Ja Uhrit” is particularly successful, as the tremulous guitars are paired with a bass line that vibrates with rage and a raw, anguished vocal performance. Sometimes the album falters a bit under its weight, becoming a little too slow and mired in muck, losing its drive and direction. The majority of it, however, strikes a solid balance and is successful
Bleak and compassionate, furious and sorrowful, Unkind’s Harhakavut is a heavy, emotional, well-crafted album that’s well worth the time and heartache it will cost you.
http://heavymetal.about.com/od/cdreviews/fr/Unkind-Harhakuvat-Review.htm