REVIEWS OF SOULSAVIOUR (CD 2005)
LORDS
OF WINTER
Rating: 9 / 10
Voici donc
le second volet du tryptique V:28, qui nous en présente avec fracas et délice
les chapitres 11 ŕ 19. Neuf titres donc, qui surpassent aisément en qualité
les dix premiers que le combo, évoluant ŕ présent sous forme de trio, avait
accouchés en 2003 pour mon plus grand bonheur.
Tout comme son prédecesseur, le Sauveur d’Ame évolue dans ce registre Dark
Metal Industriel, et peu de changements dans la production, toujours assurée de
table de maître par Lrz de Red Harvest, sont ŕ noter. Le son des guitares est
quasiment identique ŕ celui de Nonanthropogenic, bien que légčrement plus
dense. Les claviers et effets sortent de fait du męme processeur, mais force
est de constater que le groupe a diablement pris de la bouteille dans sa capacité
d’écriture, tout en évoluant exactement dans le męme style, sans aucun
compromis, si ce n’est un abandon quasi-total des samples. Des lignes
musicales mélodiques claires et simples, truffées d’atmosphčres denses,
glaciales et post-nucléaires, des rythmiques toujours digitales, mais avec
cette fois des sonorités encore plus organiques. Les synthétiseurs, quant ŕ
eux, ont gagné en profondeur et tissent une toile sonore délicieusement mélancolique
et froide en arričre-plan.
S’étant discrčtement octroyé les services de prestigieux musiciens de la scčne
industrielle, Lina Baby Doll (Deutsch Nepal), et Peter Andersson (Raison
d’Etre), V:28 cherche cette fois ŕ imbriquer plus encore ses influences Dark
Ambient avec son Dark Metal trčs direct, et immédiatement, dčs la premičre
seconde de “Unleash The Energy”, on ne cesse d’ętre écrasés par des
riffs épiques qui mélangent mélancolie, puissance et froideur industrielle.
Ne souffrant ŕ aucun moment de redondances, les titres, massifs et accrocheurs,
s’immiscent vicieusement dans l’inconscient de l’auditeur abasourdi qui
peut désormais se vautrer béatement dans son divan et voyager dans le désert
stérile et radioactif que lui propose V:28. Ce męme auditeur, toutefois, doit
s’attendre ŕ de grands et fascinants moments de Metal et de headbanging ,
j’en veux pour exemple les superbes “A Prophecy Written In Uranium” et
“Solid Structures Unknown”, durant lesquelles sa pilosité lui donnera
l’impression de vouloir s’arracher de ses pores.
Et si Nonathropogenic souffrait ŕ la longue d’une trop grande linéarité,
Soulsaviour redresse la barre en proposant une grande variété entre les
morceaux et au sein de ceux-ci, ŕ grands coups de breaks inventifs et
communicatifs ( “ Infected By Life” et son break Electro-Metal , “The
Purifying Flames” et ses lignes mélodieuses et tristes, j’en passe et des
meilleures). Ceux-ci, enrichis par les excellents vocaux tantôt Black, tantôt
Death et par les nappes enivrantes et hypnotiques des claviers ne sauront
laisser indifférent.
Sans aucun doute, avec ce Soulsaviour, qui est assurément une excellente découverte
et un grand cru 2005, V:28 nous foudroye d’une charge thermonucléaire ŕ pas
piquer des vers, nous écorche vifs et nous laisse nous relever pour en
redemander, subjugués et ravis.
(He Who Sleeps - 19/05/2006)
UNCHAIN
THE UNDERGROUND
Rating: 8/10
Norwegian experimental/doom/death metal band V:28 have
quite the peculiar approach and gimmick pertaining to the band; the
self-described "voice of innovative deconstruction" base their concept
on a phophecy concerning the transformation and deconstruction of Earth. With
their second album, SoulSaviour, V:28's message will definitely get across to
the listener in a heavy manner.
The album opens up with a cryptic spoken intro entitled "The Brightest
Light", which concerns the most powerful explosion ever witnessed due to a
test of a hydrogen device, and sounds like a live national news broadcast.
"Unleash The Energy", the single off SoulSaviour, proceeds the
introduction with fast guitar picking that does not dissapoint the underground
metal fan. "A Prophecy In Uranium" contains a fast Thrash-like riff to
it, but still maintains the signature experimental death sound that V:28 has
perfected thus far. "Infected By Life" starts off with a strong
guitar and drum combo, and it doesn't let go of the meaty guitar and drum combo
at all. Beginning in the middle of the song, the element of programming enters
the picture, and actually works pretty well with the song.
One of the album's strongest song lies in "The Purifying Flames", with
the opening riff even being a bit catchy. In the middle of the song, the guitar
and drumming reverts back to the fast picking style that initiated "Unleash
The Energy", followed by even more programming and slow doom-like riffing.
"Solid Structure Unknown" is just an all-out balls-to-the-wall death
metal song, in terms of the fast guitar licks and drumming, plain and simple.
"As The Sky Opens" is a slow tempo track, initiated with sampling,
which in turn is followed by mid-tempo yet meaty guitar riffing... and there's a
nice audible Bass riff behind it! Additionally, "As The Sky
Opens" is the other strongest song, sharing the spot with "The
Purifying Flames". "deConstructor" opens up with the one liner,
"you've got that special glow", which proceeds into the signature
experimental death sound that V:28 have crafted.
The album concludes with the instrumental "Dead Men's Choir", which
sounds pretty much like the title suggests; It's a slow-tempo track utilizing
percussion and programming at the beginning, which then welcomes lead guitar
work and reliable drumming, only to solely conclude with even more programming.
In the end, the listener will be able to conclude that SoulSaviour contains a
unique sound and concept. At times, the music is a bit repetitive, but is still
an enjoyable listen for the underground metal fan nonetheless.
With a foggy album cover depicting a busty brunette nurse posed on a square
billboard with the phrase "... providing a bright future..."
underneath her, the music does fit the cover. The booklet is even in the form of
a fold out containing a poster of the same busty brunette nurse posed. In
fact, if SoulSaviour was on shelves at national music stores in the Heavy Metal
section, it would definitely stick out. SoulSaviour was recorded between
November 2004 and January 2005 at Forbidden Frequencies, the studio owned by the
band themselves. The recording line-up on SoulSaviour includes Kristoffer Oustad
(Lead and Rhythm Guitar, Programming), Eddie Risdal (Vocals and Rhythm Guitar)
and Atle Johansen (Bass), with members of WHEN, DEUTSCH NEPAL and RAISON D'ETRE
making appearances here and there offering programming and percussion
duties.
- Dave Larmore
At first, I didn't get the picture, but little by little, I started understanding. SoulSavior is the 2nd of three (soon to be groundbreaking) albums from V:28 that goes into detail about the total destruction of the earth. The apocalypse if you will. Part one was entitled Nonanthropogenic and got the ball rolling on a truly momentous and ingenious idea.
SoulSaviour is what I'd consider the climax of the story. It specifically goes into detail about how nuclear warfare will without a doubt be a huge factor in the murder of the Earth. "The Brightest Light", "A Prophecy Written in Uranium", and "The Purifying Flames" backs that up. Please don't misconstrue what I'm saying because the music isn't what I would consider balls to the wall doom metal, but traces of that are evident. The music itself is mostly chopped and formed into death metal with a little bit of doominess incorporated (80% death metal, 20% doom). However, there are many excerpts that have a good amount of programming but it fits in very well to the song, sometimes hardly being able to tell.
Setting up SoulSavior perfectly is "The Brightest Light". It's a brief track that sounds like an excerpt from a television news broadcast from the 1950's talking about the hydrogen bomb and leads into "Unleash the Energy" which is overall, one of the heaviest tracks and has some of the best music. "DeConstructor" is a dominant song on the album. What initially drew me to it were the demon-like vocals "You got that special glow" and what sounds like a gun being cocked. From there, it kind of goes astray from the album (musically) but is exciting to listen to. Hell's bells are ringing; the soldiers who fought tirelessly to save what part of the Earth for themselves is dead. "Dead Man's Choir" is another song unlike anything else off SS. It's much slower featuring larger amounts of programming. In the middle of the song, there's a long segment of nothing but sounds that would lead you to believe everything is dead. The living are now deceased and the Earth who once was able to withstand life can no longer do so.
Everything is dead. It is the end? We'll find out together with part three…
The second instalment in a trilogy of albums, SoulSavior lends itself to the familiar idiom that all good things come in threes. A curious blend of industrial and black metal plays out as a fucked up experiment in time travel for the metal-heads who are afraid of anything too heavy but not willing to let go of the burning desire for brutality. Crazy ambient beats are layered underneath chugging guitars that melt into triumphant and up-tempo melodies. Ministry meets Emperor in some sort of futuristic alternate universe where this kind of music isn’t being marketed to the guys who play Dungeons & Dragons on a regular basis but to the most forward-thinking and intelligent of music fans. If the final chapter to V:28’s trilogy is as climactic as this record is building it up to be, the bar will most likely be raised to unreachable heights.
By Jill Mikkelson
September 06, 2005
Compelling. I didn't quite know what to expect from this Scandinavian band. The bio hinted at some kind of industrial metal, but with contributions of Peter Andersson of RAISON D'ETRE and Lina Baby Doll of DEUTSCH NEPAL, I expected something along the lines of what you'd see on a label like Cold Meat Industries. If that was the case, I wouldn't have given this a second look, as noise/ambient isn't something covered by these pages. But as it turns out, V:28 is an industrialized black metal type band. Don't expect a mental mindfuck like 666 International from DODHEIMSGARD though. This leans more towards RED HARVEST territory (terror-tory?). Currently, the band uses a drum machine, and I don't know if there's plans to replace it with a human. Probably not, as they sort of use the machine in the same way that MYSTICUM did... as a machine, and not as a replacement for lack of a human drummer. On the other hand, they also don't program it to do anything particularly inhuman either. Soulsavior... is filled with a ton of atmosphere, and it's cold, dark, and not very organic. Expect this to be one of those hard to find sleeper albums that is completely worth the effort to track down.
Scandinavian, crushing industrial blackdeath metal with ambient inspiration, V:28 are part of a legion of post-black metal warriors who, like Red Harvest, have found their calling through militaristic industrial metal to lay to waste the human population forever and purify the world. A dark, heavy, industrial metal fury of violence, war, doom, and destruction lay out these nine tracks of awesome glory. Featuring amazing guest contributions from Lina Baby Doll of Deutsch Nepal, Peter Anderson of Raison D'etre, Lars Pedersen of When, and LRZ of Red Harvest, this sinister album of beauty and horror is a very recommended album of brillance, power, and industrial terror. The future is now.
This is a little off the beaten path. Most of the elements contained herein are normal, on their own. But given the odd but workable amalgam at work here, the new context makes for a less-than-usual experience. Death/black metal provides the vocal element here and the riffage is firmly locked into metal, as is the percussion; often the instrumentals give the music a distinctive black metal angle. But then there’s the sort of ambience that surrounds the music, as though extreme metal had been consumed by an ethereal nebula. There are also the blatant forays into electro-industrial. Something different to give metal fans a break from the everyday.
review written by: Upchuck Undergrind
This is the second album from V:28 in a trilogy. These guys play Industrial Metal music, but crossover into a lot of other genres of music. There are lots of Black Metal, Death Metal, Doom, Thrash & some Progressive music as well. These songs are very well constructed &are very technical sounding. There is a cold dark feeling that covers their music all through out. There are some more symphonic & atmospheric sounds too. The vocals are done in a mid ranged hallowed Black Metal style. These guys are great & quite original sounding. If you took bands like MINISTRY, EMPEROR, VENOM, SLAYER & DIMMU BORGIR all mixed into one super group then you'd have a good idea of what these guys would sound like!!!
NOCTURNAL
HORDE
Rating: 9 / 10
The time has now
come for the second album from the Norwegian band V:28, the second in a trilogy,
where "NonAnthropogenic" was the first album, a trilogy running
through 28 tracks, and track 11 to 19 are what they presents to us on this
album.
The dark and gripping atmosphere is still what drives the compositions from
V:28, right after the intro is done, the listener gets sucked into the universe
of "SoulSaviour" and one stays put all the way through the album. At
first the music seems more accessible on this album, compared to the first, it
is easier to get into the songs and they sticks onto the mind longer. The
melodies are more catchy and works really well on the listener and in their
context of course. There are more mellow parts involved on this album, compared
to the first, but that doesn't make the impact of the music weaker, it makes it
seem more thought-through and well-weighed, and the final impact is in fact more
lasting and impressive. There are many good leads involved in the built up of
the atmosphere, cold and dark, twisted and eerie, like my fave lead on this
album in the song 'As The Sky Opens', very atmospheric. There are also a bigger
presence of keys and electronic effects, again a thing that makes the music seem
more whole and adds a lot to the atmosphere, which is quite mystical at times.
A very strong album, containing a lot of good hooks, a gripping atmosphere, good
musicianship and a lot of good ideas, which are getting carried well out. It is
kinda sad to think about that the band initially planned to disband V:28, after
the release of the third album. Though let's see, after the impact they have had
with their 2 first albums, they’ll might reconsider, we can at least hope.
This one is for a sure a good buy for fans of industrial death metal with a lot
of atmosphere and a great impact, I am impressed, and can't wait to hear the
next chapter.
METAL
COVEN
Rating: 8.5 / 10
Admittedly, I am a sucker for concept albums. Conceptual
bands go even farther to win my love; I won't proclaim a bad album good solely
based on such aspects, but as a literary-minded person, I tend to develop more
of an emotional attachment to bands and artists that sacrifice 'song' in the
name of 'album.' So when I discovered that V:28's cyber metal
"SoulSaviour" was the second part of a trilogy, even though I had
already decided that this was a solid release, I felt my enjoyment of an already
good album increase substantially.
V:28 (certainly one of the stranger band names I have come across) consists of
three Norwegians covering guitars, vocals, and bass. In the style of most cyber
metal, there is no drummer. Nevertheless, like most cyber metal bands, the music
does not suffer from the lack of a human percussionist. I've probably said this
before (and forgive me for being repetitive), but cyber metal is the one
subgenre of extreme metal for which electronic drums makes no negative
difference. If anything, it allows for an increased flexibility in melding the
sounds of brutal metal and inhuman electronica.
And V:28 certainly feature plenty of both elements. For the most part, this is a
contemporary black metal album: slow melodies, distorted guitars, blasting,
double bass, harsh vocals… you get the picture. There is certainly some
Enslaved influence here, as well as a touch of Dimmu Borgir and even some
Emperor at times. Eddie Risdal (the aforementioned vocalist) growls somewhere
around the middle of the range of extreme metal vocalists, neither especially
guttural nor especially shrieking. And Kristoffer Oustad (the other half of
V:28's main songwriting duo) boasts some mighty fine picking, complete with
self-harmonized black metal fuzz and rhythmic crunch.
Intermingled amongst the sonic atrocities of black metal are the synthetic
sounds of techno and electronica – artificial beats, ambient melodic
soundscapes, and numerous sound bytes and audio clips. Brave Words & Bloody
Knuckles draws a comparison to the ambience of many a Cold Meat Industry artist;
I probably wouldn't go that far, but there is definitely enough simulated sound
here to satisfy any cyber metal or industrial fan.
As mentioned earlier, "SoulSaviour" is the second of a trilogy of
albums. In fact, this album's tracks (on the packaging, not the disc) begin with
eleven, and the ten tracks on V:28's prior album "NonAnthropogenic"
are visible above the nine tracks on the back of the "SoulSaviour"
packaging, albeit in a corroded, almost illegible state. Furthermore, blank
track numbers up to 28 continue below "Dead Men's Choir," leading me
to assume that V:28 will be releasing a total of 28 tracks spread amongst their
cyber metal trilogy.
It's this sort of meta-album continuity that makes me feel all warm and tingly
inside.
Despite such awe-inspiring conceptual unification, "SoulSaviour" is
not the greatest metal album released this year. It probably won't even end up
on this year's top ten, unfortunately. Regardless of a strong inter-album
concept and my own admitted soft spot for cyber metal, V:28 just aren't catchy
or memorable enough to stand out amongst the numerous stellar metal releases
gracing store shelves and CD racks everywhere. Truth be told, they barely hold a
candle to the likes of ShadowCast or the Kovenant. There is just not enough
memorability here... I enjoy listening to "SoulSaviour" as the disc
plays, but even a few hours afterwards I am hard-pressed to remember any
melodies or vocal lines. Moreover, the uniqueness of V:28's music is almost too
vague to be worth mentioning; they sound good, but it takes a great deal of
effort to get more specific than that.
Nonetheless, "SoulSaviour" is a solid cyber metal album (my
description, not theirs), and I would be surprised if I don't end up with
"NonAnthropogenic" and the next V:28 album one of these days. Fans of
more industrial-oriented cyber metal bands like …and Oceans will certainly
find V:28 to be to their liking. Just don't expect the metal album to end all
metal albums.
HAMMERHEAD
ZINE
Rating: 3.5 / 5
Norway brings yet another band into your home. This record
has song titles I can’t even read making it that much harder to listen to. The
first track starts with effects and can qualify for movie soundtrack quality.
The second track “Unleash The Enemy” kicks up the frigid sounding black
metal with riffs that are extremely piercing and effective. “A Prophecy
Written In Uranium” takes us on a bit slower evil play. “Infected By Life”
kicks some more needling riffs that just chug along a heavy and crushing path.
The drums are incredibly versatile. The trio gives off the impression of Venom,
Motörhead, Destruction and that type of vibe. “The Purifying Flames” is
another that slowly gets its destructive point across. This is also about some
big three part trilogy I need to find out more about. “Solid Structure
Unknown” throws a flurry of cold black thrashing riffs at the listener. “The
Sky Opens” all effected and weirded out. Then a slower pace begins as this
colossal Doomicus plays. They reminded me of a band called Nightfall. This was
that bad of a record at all. If you love your music evil sounding and not afraid
to add tribal metal sound then look no further V: 28 serve you evil.
SHAPELESS
ZINE (Italian)
Rating: 8.5 / 10
E' con colpevole
ritardo che Shapeless Zine si occupa del secondo full-length dei norvegesi V:28.
In realtŕ, non č che ci fossimo dimenticati di questo ottimo gruppo. Purtroppo
il pacco promozionale speditoci dall'etichetta americana Vendlus Records č
andato perduto, ed il sottoscritto ha speso un sacco di tempo per cercare di
ritrovarlo. Tutti gli sforzi sono risultati vani ma, dato che questo CD dei V:28
mi interessava, ho deciso di comperarlo direttamente dall'etichetta, al prezzo
di 15$ spese postali incluse. E, per ripagare la cortesia di Joseph Cortese e
della sua Vendlus Records, eccomi ora qui a recensire questo
"SoulSaviour".
Si tratta del secondo sforzo della band di Kristoffer Oustad (chitarra solista e
ritmica, programmazione) e di Eddie Risdal (voce, chitarra ritmica). Li
attendevo con impazienza, vista la bontŕ del loro precedente lavoro
"NonAnthropogenic" (2003). In occasione delle registrazioni del nuovo
album, al duo si č aggiunto un terzo elemento: il bassista Atle Johansen.
"SoulSaviour" č stato registrato tra il novembre del 2004 ed il
gennaio del 2005, presso gli studi Forbidden Frequencies. Come per il disco
precedente, la produzione č ad opera di LRZ dei Red Harvest.
Il CD č aperto da "The Brightest Light", un'introduzione composta ed
eseguita da Lina Baby Doll dei Deutsch Nepal. Questo titolo ben si accorda con
la copertina dell'album, cosě simile eppure diversissima da quella di
"NonAnthropogenic". Come nell'album precedente, la copertina
rappresenta un paesaggio senza vita: alberi morti, palazzi diroccati e,
particolare fondamentale, quello che sembra un grosso schermo televisivo, o un
gigantesco espositore di cartelloni pubblicitari. A differenza di
"NonAnthropogenic", tale schermo non rappresenta piů un volto coperto
da una maschera a gas, ma le fattezze sensuali di una conturbante infermiera in
minigonna. Sotto di lei, campeggio la scritta "...providing a bright
future...". In piů, al posto del vecchio cielo verdastro e malaticcio,
il paesaggio č sbiadito da un biancore accecante. Tipo una nebbia fitta. Il
titolo dell'introduzione quindi č quanto di piů appropriato! La musica č una
semplice sequenza di note elettroniche e pulsazioni ritmiche, presto soppiantate
dalla voce di un giornalista che annuncia l'inizio dell'era nucleare.
La prima canzone vera e propria si intitola "Unleash The Energy". Il
riff d'apertura č pregno di una malinconia senza fine. I V:28 confermano, sin
dalla prime battute, quanto sia importante la melodia nel loro songwriting. Il
death melodico, contaminato da suggestioni cibernetiche, non punta tanto
all'impatto devastante, quanto piuttosto a comunicare emozioni. Per questo
motivo, soprattutto nei momenti piů lenti e doomeggianti, la musica dei
norvegesi sfiora i territori del gothic. "Unleash The Energy" č una
canzone in puro stile V:28, coerente con quanto si č ascoltato su
"NonAnthropogenic", anche se piů vigorosa e matura. I vocalizzi di
Eddie, in particolare, sono veramente cattivi. Il lungo finale, triste come non
mai, č quasi commovente.
"A Prophecy Written In Uranium" č di tutt'altra pasta. Sebbene non
faccia della velocitŕ il suo punto di forza (ma quando mai i V:28 hanno puntato
su di essa?), č senz'altro piů vitale e grintosa di "Unleash The
Energy". Le due chitarre costruiscono riff essenziali sul consueto, gelido
ritmo della drum-machine. L'arrangiamento č arricchito da vari suoni, che
rendono piů vivace la gamma sonora. Si segnala, da questo punto di vista, il
contributo di LRZ. E' incredibile come questa canzone riesca ad essere cosě
diversa da quella che l'ha preceduta, ma al tempo stesso cosě simile (come per
il discorso copertine, no?)! Insomma, lo stile di questi norvegesi č giŕ
maturo, inconfondibile! Gli strumenti macinano un ritmo costante, eppure cosě
ostinato. Il gutturale urla parole tra il folle e l'ironico: "La guerra
č salva!". La traccia č chiusa da una coda ambient, onirica e
"spaziale".
"Infected By Life" parte con un riff al rallentatore, che presto si
sviluppa in un riffing ritmico molto pesante. Un'altra chitarra arricchisce il
tessuto sonoro, in concomitanza con le note sintetiche. L'effetto complessivo č
inquietante. Presto, una base elettronica spiana la strada alla successiva
accelerazione del brano. La pulsazione ritmica č costante ed insistente, quasi
da discoteca, e su di essa chitarre, voce ed effetti sonori creano una musica
straniante, aliena, inumana. Un altro passo in avanti nella ricerca artistica
dei V:28 (che in questo CD si autodefiniscono "la voce della
decostruzione innovativa... per un vivere ed un morire di successo!"),
mai cosě elettronici prima d'ora.
"The Purifying Flames" ci riporta su territori piů tradizionali. Le
due chitarre costruiscono arrangiamenti semplici ma efficaci, spesso e
volentieri di pura matrice death. Ovviamente, la melodia č sempre in primo
piano e, per quanto potente, la canzone risulta sempre evocativa ed atmosferica.
La ritmica, lenta, č doomeggiante. La composizione č strutturata in un
crescendo di emozioni, grazie alla ricchezza dei suoni programmati dal buon
Kristoffer. Assieme alla malinconica traccia d'apertura, uno dei brani piů
suggestivi dei V:28.
"Solid Structure Unknown" ha un testo che annuncia l'avvento di un
salvatore, per tutte le genti devastate dalla guerra e dai disastri nucleari. E'
una composizione severa e tesa. Il ritmo č principalmente lento, ma si segnala
qualche accelerazione aggressiva. Il brano si sviluppa in una serie di
variazioni, sempre interessanti e pesantemente iniettate di virus elettronici.
E' impossibile, anche in questo caso, non sottolineare la contraddizione che giŕ
si avvertiva in "NonAnthropogenic". La musica comunica emozioni,
eppure č cosě fredda e distante. Come ho scritto nella recensione dell'album
precedente, queste emozioni non sembrano altro che la bieca copia, da parte di
una macchina, dei sentimenti umani. La musica dei V:28 sembra che voglia
confidarci qualcosa di molto personale, ma al tempo stesso ci tiene a distanza.
E' ambigua, tanto piů che in "Solid Structure Unknown" si avverte una
distante melodia intonata da una voce umana (quella dell'ospite Kim W. Isaksen),
cosě strana in un contesto cosě meccanico.
"The Sky Opens", una canzone sull'autodistruzione umana, ha un
incedere lento, quasi sacrale. L'avanzare č possente: č notevole la capacitŕ
espressiva di questo gruppo! Bella l'interpretazione di Eddie, sia in growling
che in screaming. Una menzione anche al miglioramente delle parti ambient,
sempre piů abili a centrare l'obbiettivo, e meno abbozzate di una volta!
"DeConstructor" č la classica canzone alla V:28, ostinata e melodica.
Una composizione che guarda al passato, al presente e anche al futuro, visto che
il testo annuncia una continuazione del concept. D'altro canto, la cosa č
facilmente intuibile. Le tracce presenti in "SoulSaviour" sono
numerate da undici a diciannove. Le prime dieci erano quelle di
"NonAnthropogenic". Le restanti saranno quelle, presumibilmente, del
prossimo album. "DeConstructor" č una buona canzone, che mantiene
alto il livello dell'album.
"SoulSaviour" č concluso dalla triste outro strumentale "Dead
Men's Choir", composta da Kristoffer in collaborazione con Peter Andersson
dei Raison D'Etre, e che vede il contributo alle percussioni di Lars Pedersen
dei When. Il tutto termina la sua corsa su una lunga coda ambient.
Melodia e potenza, atmosfere ed emozioni: ecco cosa puň trovare l'ascoltatore
in "SoulSaviour". Un album di buon livello, piů potente e
complessivamente convincente rispetto a "NonAnthropogenic". Il lettore
č invitato a visitare il sito dei V:28, per scaricare qualche mp3 dei nuovi
brani. Se questa recensione vi avesse incuriosito, sono piů che sicuro che
l'ascolto diretto di queste canzoni vi convincerŕ all'acquisto di
"SoulSaviour". Bravi V:28, ed i miei complimenti alla Vendlus Records
per la forza con cui crede in questa ottima band!
COPPERPRESS
A very strange combination of black-ish metal, industrial
and brutal goth rock thrown in along the way. V:28 certainly isn’t the first
band to throw together these elements, though it’s one of the few to do it
this well. There are moments where the ear skates across the surface of the
material - “A Prophecy Written in Uranium” is about as interesting as
listening a recipe for meatloaf being read repeatedly for five-and-a-half
minutes and “As the Sky Opens” may have seemed like a great idea in the
rehearsal room but never blossomed into anything more than that - but
“Infected by Life” and “Unleash the Energy” do nothing less but instill
excitement in the listener. – Jedd Beaudoin (2005 The Daily Copper)
MONDO
GORDO
V:28
is a three-piece band led by main songwriter, lead and rhythm guitarist, and
programmer Kristoffer Oustad. Vokills and rhythm guitar are handled by Eddie
Risdal, with bass guitar played by Atte Johansen.
V:28 is a band that that defies and redefines styles in the often-inbred world of extreme metal. They are a band that brings originality and a strong identity to metal's 'been there, done that' modus operandi as of late. In fact it's kind of hard for me to put a classification on them, or pin them down with a labeling of a certain style. I'll try, though, and I can easily say that it's a version of black metal. What version? The V:28 version, I guess -- haha!
No, really, it's black metal in feel and somewhat musically, but it is far more than what black metal might bring to mind. A lot of times, black metal is instantly thought of as crappy-sounding in it's production, and to be sure there are still lots of black metal bands getting that crappy sound and doing it on purpose. Not V:28! They have embraced recording technology and woven it into the stark apocalyptic music they write. I can give some other band names to reference for comparison that will put you in the ballpark of what V:28 sound like: Ram-Zet, Vreid, Windir, Project: Failing Flesh and Dimmu Borgir all come to mind, but V:28 possess what all the aforementioned bands possess, and that's a 'touch' of their own, an identity that vastly separates them from the pack.
The music on SoulSaviour is intensely melodic, almost orchestral in its approach. The drums are superbly programmed and never cheesy…you can tell they were thought out very carefully and at most times you can't tell it's not a real drummer. For this music, though, the machined drums are fitting and a real drummer might actually dumb the music down. The cold, mechanical nature of the music itself is only heightened by the programmed drums. The precise guitar riffs and tightness of the playing is also calculated and cold and brings an added darkness to the music along with the disparate keyboard flourishes that color the ink with even more blackness. The haunting vokills are black sounding but somehow retain more depth than the normal black metal "gutted pig squealing" we're used to.
The music here is epic and broad and it takes you somewhere farther than most black metal bands out there. I don't know… it's almost cinematic in its scope. If you dig any of those other bands I mentioned above, I would be apt to say you'd like this. Not easily found in stores, I'd try their label home at Vendlus Records to pick it up or to hear some samples of it.
PACEDOGMAN
Rating: 3.5 / 5
"SoulSaviour" is not only the second album by
Norway's V:28, it's also the second part in a proposed trilogy that started with
2003's 'NonAnthropogenic'. Since then this duo have added a bassist to the
line-up. As the intro (a reference to hydrogen bomb testing) indicates this is
far from happy music. It's dramatic, end-of-the-world stuff, which might explain
the cold atmosphere and production. The press info describes this as
‘Industrial Metal' but that really might give people the wrong idea. Sure, the
drums come out of a machine and give a mechanical touch to the music but this is
still more black metal than anything else. Think FEAR FACTORY with corpsepaint.
It's a good album overall, although admittedly it took some getting used to for
me. At first its combination of drum-machines, death grunts, repetitive riffs
and ambient keyboard soundscapes was a bit of a turnoff but after a few listens
it grows on you. Personally I would have liked some of the songs a bit shorter
and some of the rhythms a bit faster, and also one really has to be in the mood
for downbeat music like this, but then you world weary metal types may consider
this a recommendation. Apparently the band took into consideration that their
nightmarish futuristic sound might be a bit much even for the most jaded
metalhead, because when you fold out the CD-cover you get a pin-up of a very
sexy nurse. Smart move, guys! Nobody's idea of a party record but good in its
genre.
VENTRILOCUTION
Ah… that oldtime nurse fetishism rehashed once again!
Ok…let me just start that again: after an average but still fairly promising
debut, Norsk svart-industrialists V:28 announce their return with their personal
SoulSaviour procedures. There still feats noble inviting, LRZ still produces and
the band are still firmly dwelling on the apocalypse manifesto, being this the
part II of the concerning trilogy. An interesting aspect immediately evident
from the intro is the (missing) link between CMI’s breed and (Blackish) Metal:
“The Brightest Light” is courtesy of a Deutsch Nepal member and the outro
was crafted in joint-venture with Raison D’Ętre’s Peter Andersson. This duo
represents the most notable contributions and does enhance the album’s mood,
what with the natural similitude amongst best case scenario visions of the dying
day for both musical styles (“…providing a bright future…”, indeed).
The music this human-hating trio unleashes strays not much from their previous opus, meaning Industrial machine-like programmed beats and blackish rolled riffing, high-tech sampling and menacing synth atmospheres. And the cold soulless screams you’ve all heard at least a million times before; no wonder then how the all-too-short operatic chanting on “Solid Structure Unknown” immediately raises the ante, much in the same fashion as it had already done with Grutle’s leg on NonAnthropogenic. The cyber-militaristic mindset is kept throughout and deepened with some hectic, at times almost mid-eastern melodicism. The influences on this bleak record remain pretty much the same (Limbonic Art, Red Harvest, Enslaved) but the band’s output seems now increasingly confident, mid-tempo quasi-doom riffing on every corner. Apart from the quite ambient-atmospherical and revealing intro/outro there are no real standout tracks, as this is a pretty cohesive & solid experience, turning track-picking into a rather pointless task.
I
must state this 2nd part is globally superior to the first one. Though still not
a release to make my spine chill and bones scrape – greatly due to the
uninventiveness of the guitar riffs - I reckon V:28 made an attempt to diversify
a bit within a soundrealm that is tremendously closed. This shall appeal to
devotees of Industrial Metal of the death/blackish pedigree and even some more
open-minded darkwave/ noise lunnies, and is undoubtedly an ambience-deep
release, one that effectively conjures images of the Armageddon at our reach,
placing its dim light nicely in hindsight perspective. Nihilistic &
oppressive.
VS
WEBZINE
Rating: 16,5 / 20
Les Norvégiens n'ont pas leur pareil pour nous pondre des
projets plus hallucinants les uns que les autres en terme de musique et ce n'est
pas V:28 qui viendra contrecarrer cette remarque. Puisant ses racines dans le
black-metal d'IMMORTAL ou de MAYHEM ŕ la grande époque, le groupe y a insufflé
des touches électro et industrielles faisant de V:28 un petit frčre de Bioman,
comprenez ici un projet moitié homme moitié machine. On pense ŕ VOID OF
SILENCE dans l'esprit ou ŕ un THE KOVENANT voir ABORYM mais en beaucoup moins
soniques. On serait amené ŕ parler ici de post black-metal ou de doom black
industriel, mais les étiquettes sont une nouvelles fois trop réductrices pour
dépeindre pleinement le paysage musical proposé par V:28. Le groupe a créé
un concept basé sur une prophétie de la déconstruction et la transformation
de la plančte Terre pour "mieux vivre et mieux mourir" comme écrit
dans la pochette. Kézako? Tout un univers étrange et chiadé, oů rien n'est
laissé au hasard, et qui au travers de trois albums (V:28 se limitera ŕ une
trilogie), sera dévoilé ŕ l'esprit des plus curieux. Aprčs le premier volet
"NonAnthropogenic" sorti en 2003, voici donc le second, baptisé
"SoulSaviour" avec le petit sous-titre ironique "... providing a
bright future". Et que dire de cet album sinon, que, comme dans le premier,
l'ambiance est apocalyptique et oppressante. Les guitares vous assčnent des
riffs aux mélodies glaciales et malsaines appuyées par l'utilisation d'une boîte
ŕ rythme excellemment programmée. Les vocaux de Eddie Risdal sont quant ŕ eux
ahurissant, ŕ la fois chargés de haine et empreint de désespoir. Pour que la
mayonnaise soit parfaite, le groupe nous sert des arrangements léchés ŕ grand
renfort de nappes de synthés plombantes ("As The Sky Opens"), de
pianos fantomatiques ("The Purifying Flames", "Solid Structure
Unknown"), de breaks électro ("Infected By Life") ou de samples
assommant (l'introductif "The Brightest Light" oů on entend un
speaker annoncer que l'on va assister ŕ l'explosion la plus puissante jamais
vue par l'Humanité, fait marquant la naissance de l'čre nucléaire - une des
plus grosses conneries de l'homme: ndr). On ne peut pas parler de
"SoulSaviour..." sans évoquer l'ahurissant travail effectué sur
l'artwork, véritable continuation de celui du précédent volet, présentant un
paysage apocalyptique sur fond de couleurs pastel brumeuses. Décrire tous les détails
liant les pochettes des deux opus serait trop long et fastidieux et je laisse le
plaisir ŕ ceux les tenant entre leurs mains d'apprécier les diverses
interconnexions. Tout est travaillé, jusqu'au moindre petit détail, et on ne
ressort pas de cet album vraiment intact tant l'ensemble image/musique est homogčne
et crédible. "SoulSaviour..." rentre directement dans ma liste
d'albums de l'année 2005 et je ne peux que vous inciter ŕ jeter une oreille ŕ
cette trilogie aussi surprenante que captivante.
ADRENALIN
FANZINE
Vocals: 9.5 / 10
Instruments: 9.0 / 10
Production: 10.0 / 10
Originality: 9.0 / 10
Overall: 9.5 / 10
I don’t find many bands that
represent one of my favorite styles of music like this one does. They call
themselves Industrial Metal. I would add Black Melodic Doom to the description
though. Regardless of what you call them, just about any fan of death or doom
will find V:28 a nice addition to their collection of CD’s. Some may consider
this band to be a basic Norwegian metal band, but the industrial beats, mix of
genres, and creativity give them the bit of uniqueness that one craves when
searching for a new band to explore. Music is awesome, production is awesome,
and Eddie Risdal tops off the album with some cold haunting growling vocals.
Check them out at www.v28.com or www.vendlus.com.
LORDS
OF METAL
Rating: 85 / 100
ENGLISH
Artwork that shows a picture of a city that seems to be destroyed in the final
nuclear war, and a biography that emphasizes mostly the industrial side of this
band made me believe I had to deal with a "Cold Meat" kind of gothic
industrial act here.
And all this while the first full song 'Unleash The Energy' on the album
immediately shows us the true roots of V:28: 'regular', midtempo black metal.
However the industrial side of the band was not completely made up by these dark
minds. The intro and outro are both constructed by members of industrial acts
(Deutsch Nepal and Raison D'etre) and a person named LRZ (from Red Harvest, can
also be celebrated for his terrific producing skills on this album) did part of
the programming. Because the drummer on 'SoulSaviour' is kind of dead. Although
just as with Limbonic Art (RIP) you would not directly notice that all
percussion comes from a little black box, especially the breaks and fills sound
mechanical and inhuman. But the smooth way in which V:28 switches from drum kit
to beats makes clear that a human drummer would not really be in the right place
with this band.
With all this the 'regular' aspect of the band wears of quickly . The keyboards
and electronics make the whole sound cold and futuristically enough to fit with
the album sleeve after all. Norway can add yet another black metal band that
will do its job in an extra special way. Addicts of old school black metal 'on
warp speed' do not need to bother trying this, but people that think a
combination of midtempo, keyboards, and modernity should have no problem
digesting an album like 'SoulSaviour'. And if none of these description fits
you, you can always buy this album for the fold-out mini poster of a Norwegian
pin-up that is hidden inside the booklet (a smart marketing trick!?).
DUTCH
Een hoesje met een afbeelding van een stad die eruit ziet als of er net een atoom bom op is gevallen, en een biografie die vooral rept over de industriele kant van de band laten mij al gauw in de waan dat ik hier met een 'Cold Meat' industrial act te maken heb.
En dat terwijl op het moment dat het eerste echte nummer 'Unleash The Energy' door je speakers knalt er geen twijfel is over de ware roots van V:28; gewoon lekkere doordeweekse midtempo black metal. Maar van de industriele kant van het verhaal is niet alles uit de zwartgeblakerde duim gezogen. De intro en outro zijn zelfs gefabriceerd door industrial acts (leden van Deutsch Nepal en Raison D'etre) en een persoon genaamd LRZ (Red Harvest, maakt hier ook een zeer goede beurt met de toegankelijke productie) neemt de programmering voor zijn rekening. Want de drummer op 'SoulSaviour' is nogal dood. Hoewel je net als bij een band als Limbonic Art (RIP) niet echt door hebt dat alle percussie uit een doosje komt, zijn voor al de breaks en fills een tikkeltje aan de mechanische kant. Maar de soepele manier waarop V:28 switched van normale drums naar beats maken duidelijk dat een menselijke drummer hier minder op zijn plaats was geweest.
En zo is het doordeweekse van deze band er wel snel af. De keyboards en electronica maken het geheel kil en futuristisch genoeg om het hoesje niet uit de toon te laten vallen, en Noorwegen heeft er wederom een black metal band bij die het allemaal net eventjes iets anders doet. Liefhebbers van een vieze old school op warpspeed zijn allang afgehaakt bij de nieuwere bands, mensen die midtempo, keyboards, en moderniteit een mooie combinatie vinden tasten zonder schroom toe. En anders kun je de CD altijd nog halen om de fold-out van de Noorse pin-up die zich in het hoesje bevindt (slimme marketing truc!?).
SLUG
MAG
V:28 = Red Harvest + Emperor + Fear Factory + Velvet Acid
Christ
Coming from the depths of Norway, V:28 is ready to provide a transfusion of some
odd cold metallic substance into your veins. This isn’t your average Norwegian
metal, boys and girls—the darkness and emotion pouring out of SoulSavior is
impeccable. Freezing guitars bellow against machine-precision drumming and a
hefty growl, with ambient and sometimes techno beats layered in the background.
All provide an eerie substance so thick and heavy you could only slice through
it with bolt-cutters. If there was such a genre as industrial black metal, V:28
play it at its finest. The record is the second of what will be a trilogy, so go
dig up the first album—it’s just as powerful. Produced and programmed by
industrial metal fiend LRZ (Red Harvest), the quality of recording is of course
outstanding. –Bryer Wharton
SLEAZEGRINDER
V:28 is a Norwegian
cyber-core band made up of ex-black metal heathens tripping on technical
ecstasy. Featuring guest spots from various Eurodustrial luminaries (I don't
imagine big ol' bells are gonna ring here, but members of Deutsch Nepal, Raison
D’Etre, and When contributed 'added percussion', vox, etc), “Soulsaviour’
is pounding, progressive industro-metal fueled by thrashy riffs, a snowbeast
rasp, and a thunderous battery of militaristic drumbeats. And while it’s icy
demeanor suggests a wicked doom-most-digital, at it’s blackened heart,
Soulsaviour is really just a highly evolved thrash metal record. Epic
blizzardmetal blasts like “Unleash the Energy” and “Infected by
Life” lack the immediacy of high-contract kill-metal like Immortal or
Witchery, but V:28 are definitely in the same bloody arena. They just
twiddle their knobs too much.
Bonus: the CD booklet folds out into a pin-up of a scantily clad rock n’ roll nurse! Bet you didn’t see THAT coming.
THE
GREAT NOTHING
V:28 was formed in 2002 by Kristoffer Ousted (lead and
rhythm guitar and programming) and Eddie Risdal (vocals and rhythm guitar).
Towards the end of 2003 Atle Johansen was recruited as bass and the group
decided to use programmed drums since they had split from their original
drummer. The group’s name refers to the prophecy of Earth’s deconstruction
and transformation.
V:28 is a slightly industrial death metal band. The vocals are decidedly death
metal, as is the majority of the instrumentals though there is some industrial
elements added into the mix. The instruments lay down a solid beat that the
vocals travel on, giving the tracks a smooth overall feeling. The drums are well
used as well. While the bass drum tends to be used throughout the whole tracks
at a pretty consistent speed that isn’t too fast but isn’t slow either, the
other drums are used as well and add to the tracks as opposed to being chaotic
and distracting. The guitars are also well utilized setting down some nice
riffs. And true to the influence of their name, the lyrics are based on
destruction.
The first time I listened to this album I wasn’t too into it, but when I
listened to it a second time it was a lot better. I had time to evaluate it much
closer and pay closer attention to it the second time. The album is really quite
good and includes two tracks by other bands, the first track being “The
Brightest Light” by Lina Baby Doll and the final track, “Dead Men’s
Choir” composed by Kristoffer Ousted and Peter Andersson.
Key Tracks: The Purifying Flames
Reviewed by: Josh Wagers
PIVOTAL
RAGE
Rating: 5 / 5
Let’s face it, black metal as a whole is not what it
once was. The originators of the genre are either long gone, or have past their
prime years ago (yeah, I’m lookin’ your way Mayhem), and to the mainstream
audience, it remains a joke to most. Originators of the melodic black style
haven’t put out relevant releases in years, and bands like Cradle of Filth are
making a mockery of what was a once good genre. In the process, the Hot Topic
crowd and the tr00 “kvlt” elitists have started what is looking like a
fanboy civil war. However, I stand today, to call upon the attention of both
audiences, or any fans of a rapidly dying genre to introduce a work of art.
Soulsavior’s intro alone is worth the price tag of the disc. I won’t reveal
too much about it, but it more than sets the tone for the rest of the album.
V:28 are able to take that classic black metal vibe, add death metal influences,
and sprinkle an almost ambient techno feel. Each track is significantly unique
and there is absolutely NO filler here. The production has a very raw feel to it
without sounding like it was recorded with a Fisher Price cassette player in an
effort to sound “grym”. Even with the raw sound, the electronics in the
background add an unforgettable melodic ambiance. Also, the usage of sound clips
here is PERFECT. There are no mindless sound clips thrown in for no reason, they
actually flow with the music this time. For those who have been waiting for the
album that can match the melody and high-energy of Enthroned Darkness Triumphant
or Storm Of The Light’s Bane, pick this up NOW. What are you waiting for? GO,
NOW!
168
MAGAZINE
Billing this as an “industrial” album is a clever way
to get this store-brand mutt-mix of Nephilim-thieving slug-core and
exposed-intestines-metal a turn in the CD players of unsuspecting reviewers; you
have to give em that. Problem is that the ozone layer is slowly being eaten away
by the ridiculous amount of carbon-based whatchamacallits releasing this type of
goat-methane, not that there’s anyone paying enough attention to demand that
they cease and desist forthwith. www.vendlus.com
ULTIMATE
METAL
Rating: 8,5 / 10
Listening to SoulSaviour – with the subtitle
…providing a bright future… – will only dampen your spirits in that
hurts-in-a-good-way concept. So, don’t say I didn’t warn you. Although, this
second entry in a saga of three is entirely capable of snatching acclaim from
bigger acts, which puts V:28 in the power position. And why shouldn’t they be
lauded for such an adept effort?
What began with NonAnthropogenic is overtly continued with SoulSaviour. Yes,
billboard-depicting cover art has returned, and the rear of the tray hastens to
point out that the opener, “The Brightest Light,” is track eleven of
nineteen. Ultimately, the group have twenty-eight songs in their sights, which
will be realized upon their next full-length. Having said that, it’s quite
easy to pigeonhole V:28’s sound: black/death with heavy keyboard usage. Also,
the record adopts a dark mindset from the very beginning, and likening them to
Enslaved isn’t completely out of the question. Funnily enough, though, there
are idiosyncrasies present on SoulSaviour that are just begging to be ogled such
as the announcer on “The Brightest Light,” the programmed drums that riddle
“Infected by Life,” and the Mortal Kombat soundtrack-esque moment within the
same song. The groundbreaking riffage – that illuminates “The Purifying
Flames” – is just fantastic, as are the masculine vocals, which walk hand in
hand with the former. Moreover, the lead in “The Purifying Flames” is
unmistakably Opethian in nature, and there are surprises essentially around
every corner. The album tuckers out after roughly forty minutes.
Must you glare at me like that? Frankly, this is a superb recording that was
superbly reviewed ( ), so take that information and use it to your dejected
heart’s content. Oh, and another thing: BEST. LINER. NOTES. EVER.
QUINTESSENCE
WEBZINE
Never heard of this band either but holy freakin' Christ,
this is the mst phenomenal style of atmospheric and Industrial-styled Black
Metal I ever heard. Hints of some Death Metal but V:28 is way beyond comparison
to anything Black Metal. This is the most original band I've heard in quite some
time. The construction of songs is so well-woven with atmosphere, songwiting
skill and compositional ideas, you just have to hear this for yourself. Just
amazing and not even a hint of let-up or commercialization if you're worried
about that sort of thing. Easily one album to make the "Best Of 2005"
on my yearly tabulations of reviews, V:28 is so hard to describe. Think maybe
early Tiamat and the Industrial touch of Canada's Inner Thought with more range
on the vocals and musical ideas that are ahead of their time. If you even buy 5
cd's this year, make sure V:28 is on that list; I shit you not, this band is
tremendous and they are of need of more global exposure and it's bands like
these that make me hate Headbangers Ball even more only because this is what
Metal is all about...not that teenage Hip-Hop crossover Nu-Metal nonsense.
Support V:28 and bands that have more of an underground mentality and Metal
blood in their veins.
ENOUGH
FANZINE
After having listened to the
first couple of minutes of this CD, the first thing that came to my mind was,
that the artwork is totally out of place for music like this. Come on guys, how
does this pin up girl go along with your music??? Anyway, the info sheet speaks
of Industrial Metal and as I´m not into that kind of stuff, I think this gives
you a little impression of what to expect. Has it´s moments, but I rather stick
to Jesu or Godflesh when it comes to “Industrial Metal” or Xasthur or
Leviathan, when it comes to dark and gloomy stuff.
Industrial metal carved into cohesion by three Norweigien veterans. This is bleak, post-apocalypse devestation. The guitar lines rip. Crazy programming is all over every aspect. Partial drum machine, partial electronic set. At times it feels like Mithras or In The Woods, surprisingly. It has a doomy composition vibe like Anathema, just littered with electronic devices. -RBT
PYRO
MUSIC
Rating: 8.7 / 10
- Ian Busch
METALREVIEW.COM
Production: 4.5 / 6
Songwriting: 5 / 6
Musicianship: 5 / 6
I like you Vendlus Records. I really do. You’ve allowed
me to experience the whimsical proceedings of Especially Likely Sloth, and the
assaults of the black/death metallers known as V:28. SoulSaviour, the group’s
second foray into full-length territory, is quite the esoteric ball of wax;
although, it proves to be a highly capable record in spite of any flaws it may
unknowingly piggyback.
In what can only be described as a triumphant introduction, “The Brightest
Light” refers to hydrogen bomb testing, yet the announcer still retains a
‘40’s vibe. Overall, it’s an eyebrow-raising opener that segues directly
into “Unleash the Energy” with little to no effort whatsoever. The
previously mentioned is perhaps the most notable excursion on V:28’s latest,
because the keyboard-ridden moroseness perfectly encapsulates the general
“feel” of the album. Naturally, the vocalizations are privy to the black
metal side of things, but aren’t as extreme as vocals performed by certain
pillars of the subgenre (Vikernes, etc.). The beginning, and choruses, of
“Infected by Life” reminded me of Dave Haley (Psycroptic, The Amenta, Ruins)
obviously due to the exhilarating drumming and mind-boggling intricacies. Also,
it’s not far-fetched to claim that SoulSaviour has moments that draw influence
from fellow Norwegians Enslaved, which is entirely fitting because Kjellson
guest sang on the band’s debut full-length, namely NonAnthropogenic.
On the whole, though, V:28 suffer from inadequate production. It’s most
assuredly not the worst I’ve ever come across, but I think SoulSaviour would
benefit immensely if a sharper production would’ve been incorporated. As it
is, the tracks are all well written, and most span five or six minutes.
Along the same lines, the forty minutes that comprise this opus are forty
minutes well spent. The melding of black/death should conquer all, and the
inclusion of sublime keyboard effects heightens the group’s worth. So, thanks
Vendlus for providing me with yet another album worth owning. I suppose some
credit should be distributed to V:28 as well. It’s only fair: Thanks guys!
Jason Jordan
RISE
AND REVOLT
I got a package from a record label that I wasn't too
terribly familiar with, to be quite honest, I had never heard of them. But the
record that I got was pretty interesting. The first thing that everyone should
know about me is that I don't like industrial music, not at all. It urks me to
death. In fact, after listening to the majority of the intro, "The
Brightest Light", I almost took the cd out. No way in hell was I about to
review a purely industrial record. At the end of that track though, I heard
something that reminded me a lot of a bit that would be on an Old Man Gloom
record, so I wanted to check the rest of it out. Somehow, V:28, the Norway
monsters, have somehow managed to come up with a form of black metal straight
out of Europe that they combined with minimalist vocals and a lot of melody.
They have some industrial bits here and there that I had to try my best to
stomach down, but the metal balanced it out pretty well. All in all, V:28 isn't
the best thing I've heard, but you can tell that they're on the right track. I'd
like to see them a while from now to see what they have up their sleeves for
their next few releases.
NOCTURNAL
CULT
The first V:28 with its combination of death metal and
Industrial made quite an impact on me. The new album had a lot to live up to and
it has surpassed my expectations. This is a continuation of the first album
Anthropogenic and the song titles even start at 11 and end at 19. But not only
is this a continuation it is also an advancement of themes and composition. The
intro The Brightest Light sets the stage perfectly for the
"scientific" metal that is to follow. I love the way it transitions
from the sample of the guy's voice into the opening riff of Unleash the Energy.
V:28 has a method of epic riffing that just speaks to me on an emotional level.
Evidence of progression is that they have relied less on using the same riff to
carry the song the whole way through. They have changed it up quite a bit more
with more riff and temp changes. I think my favorite song is Infected by Life.
It has an almost techno like breakdown in the middle of it and then bursts into
some hard metal riffing that just kills me. Also the song deConstructor kills me
with its slamming bass drum effect. It adds a lot of power to the passages it is
used in. One thing though is that there seems to be a more moments of quiet
reflection and solitude on this album. I mean there are more parts that have
simple and somber keyboards or a kind of serene guitar lead. The production this
time around is pretty much the same, maybe a little cleaner. Also the industrial
"noises" and samples are a little more discernable in the mix than on
Anthropogenic. I think the cover art is a little silly. I mean I grasp the
intended message I think but it just doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me.
There is a limited version of it out there that comes with a poster as well. I
personally think these guys are bound for great things in metal and will gain a
much larger following. They definitely deserve it.
FEAST
OF HATRED AND FEAR
V:28 - SoulSavior... Providing A Brighter Future CD
(Vendlus) Those Laplanders, they truly know what to do with metal. This is the
second album in a three-part series (part one was the CD NonAnthropogenic, also
on Vendlus) where we get great black metal, but with a few twists. Some elements
of doom, metalcore and pretty heavy-handed on the electronics (which is one of
the reasons this sticks out to me so much). Behind the punishing riffs are
ethereal keyboards. When breakdowns kick in, believe it or not, so do harmonious
synths. "Infected by Life" can be played at a black metal show, and a
rave. Lina Doll of Deutsch Nepal, Peter Andersson of Raison D'etre, Red
Harvets's LRZ, Lars Pedersen of When and others contribute to the electroclash
that wonderfully scrapes the hull of this Noric vessel. Damn, I'm already
looking forward to Part Three. (July 14, 2005)
V:28 return with their second album Soul Saviour and once again push the war-ravaged, apocalyptic imagery and the industrial black metal. On the band’s previous effort, NonAnthropogenic , they ended up sounding flat and monotonous because the guitar riffs weren’t that interesting and they didn’t wholeheartedly embrace the techno/industrial side of their work. This time around, this trio push the bleak, nuclear-wind-swept landscape sound again, but instead of sounding dull and one-dimensional, they actually succeed in making it all seem very, very bleak. The keyboards are mesmerizing in “The Purifying Flames” while the techno unz-unz beat in “Infected By Life” somehow make it better than if it were just a black metal tune. I can’t say I love this CD because it is still too bleak and some of the guitar riffing isn’t the most inventive, but it’s a huge step in the right (and a new) direction for V:28. Even if you couldn’t stand the debut, Soul Saviour might have something worthwhile to offer you…perhaps a naughty nurse pin-up, though you can discover that for yourself if you buy the disc.
BRAVE WORDS AND BLOODY KNUCKLES
Rating: 7,5 / 10
The up-and-coming Norwegian trio are slowly shaping their
sound to become a deadlier killing machine. Known as Norway’s more recent
addition to the progressive/industrial/post-black metal contingency, V:28 (think
a more doomier and filthy Red Harvest) build up on their vision of futuristic
terror through nine, strongly constructed militaristic slabs of black industrial
doom, while treading the fine-line of Cold Meat Industry inspired ambience. Of
course SoulSaviour is just another step in honing V:28’s skills as there is
still more promise to be found with future releases. But nevertheless, V:28 are
slowly becoming one of Norway’s most promising new acts, and SoulSaviour is a
fine example of where the new breed are headed.
IMHOTEP
Rating: 9 / 10
Personally I never did join the critical acclaim of Red
Harvest, but at the same time I always found their first half on stage
appealing. The power this band spawned was surely worth some dimes, and I’m
always having a great time when they perform their harsh industrial metal on
stage. However, I always tend to get bored of the repetitive feeling I get from
their tracks.
V:28 have certain similarities to Red Harvest. The power is similar, and even if
V:28 do not include the same industrial atmosphere, “SoulSurvivor” is
definitely an album that possesses a cold atmosphere, bordering to the clinical
feeling the use of drum-computers can provide. Personally I am one of those who
have a fascination for the militaristic aspect drum-computers can grant me as a
listener. In V:28’s case, there’s a thin line between the militarian
perfection and the choking environment that “SoulSurvivor” moves within.
Just listen to the ambient ending of “A Prophecy Written In Uranium”, and
become relieved by the militaristic attack on the following “Infected By
Life”.
“SoulSurvivor” moves in several layers. The more obvious aspects are the
prominent power of the album as a whole. You do not get these fuzzy Black Metal
riffs that float, you do not get the fast and brutal Death Metal done the
American way, nor do you get industrial Metal just like the mentioned Red
Harvest. No, you actually get a blend of all this, wrapped up in an excellent
production that makes each instrument prominent and gives the effects room to
develop. This is a powerful mid-paced Death Metal album with heavy guitars and
vocals that are able to compete with the living legends, speaking David Vincent,
Mikael Ĺkerfeldt and Glen Benton (“Dechristianize”).
“SoulSurvivor” is a conceptual album, being the middle part of a trilogy.
“NonAnthropogenic” was released back in 2003, and can safely be purchased
along with this second part. You shouldn’t let the industrial, and even a
small techno-section, stop you from buying this album. You get varied tracks
with each its own identity. I’m even sure your favourite track will differ
from week to week, because all the tracks have a time of their own. “Infected
By Life” has the superior opening, “As The Sky Opens” builds and builds
and the change after 3 minutes may be small speaking of pace, but significant
due to the science fictional keyboards in the background, and “The Purifying
Flames” opens with sequence that could just as easily be on an early Entombed
album.
In my book I will label “SoulSurvivor” as a Death Metal album, but the
inclusion of the mentioned drum-computers as well as the fine use of keyboards /
computers makes this more than just a Death Metal album.
Add to all this that the concept deals with the total destruction of Earth, and
you understand there’s something different coming to a theatre near you.
Roy Kristensen
SCREAM MAGAZINE
Rating: 5/6
NORSK
Det tok sin tid, ĺ la dette dommedagsverket krype inn
under řrevoksen, men tross ganske enkle og lettperseptuelle komposisjoner
innehar dette albumet kvaliteter som har en ganske overraskende voksende effekt
pĺ lytteren. Mulig det er de industrielle stemningskollasjene som hjernen
sliter med ĺ filtrere? Jeg mener nemlig dette Arendalsbandet har lyktes i ĺ
skape stemninger som kler det apokalyptiske tekstkonseptet bedre enn Liv Tyler
kler nakenhet. De maskinelle effekter gir deg smĺ gysninger nedover nakkehĺrene.
Fra debuten er produksjonen betraktelig skjerpet, det lĺter simpelthen mer
profesjonelt av V:28 denne gangen. Řrlite trekk gis for enkelte langdryge
partier, men disse reddes delvis pĺ grunn av den mřrke stemningen som hele
veien hviler tungt over produktet. La oss hĺpe bandet lykkes like godt i sin sřken
etter gode distribusjonspartnere som med sin musikk. Du finner den pĺ www.v28.com.
ENGLISH
It took a while before this doomsday machine to get under
the skin,
but despite quite simple compositions this album has qualities that
have quite surprisingly evolving effect on the listener. Possibly it
is the industrial moodcollages that the brain doesn't easily
filter? I mean this Arendal band has succeeded in making moods that
suits the apocalyptic textual concept better than Liv Tyler suits
nudity. The mechanical effects gives you goosebumps down your
neck hairs. The production is noticeably strengthened since the debut,
and it simply sounds more proffessional this time. A minor drawback
for a few monotonous parts, but these are partly "saved" by the dark
mood that tlows through the whole album. Let's hope the band succeed
just as well in their quest for decent distribution as with their
music. You find it at www.v28.com
André Aaslie
SCANDINAVIAN
METAL
Production: 9
Composition: 7
Musicianship: 8
Overall: 8
V:28 is a concept band and "SoulSaviour" is the
second album in the trilogy based upon the total deconstruction of Earth. LZR of
Red Harvest is the producer once again and this time around he also did some
programming. Quite an interesting fact is that the industrial/dark ambient kings
Deutsch Nepal made the 40 seconds long intro. The outro (second part of last
song “dead men’s choir”) was made by Peter Andersson of Raison d'ętre
(another famous dark ambient band). V:28 managed this time again to hire very
interesting guest musicians; Grutle of Enslaved did guest vocals on their debut
album entitled “NonAnthropogenic“ as you may remember.
Despite of the good guest list; does the Norwegian duo deliver the good stuff
you might wonder? The programmed drums and electronic elements give this album
quite a cold mechanical/industrial feel. I feel the industrial elements are more
present and stronger in the mix this time around and to me that is a good thing.
To describing the actual material is not an easy thing. I feel “industrial
doom-thrash” might be the best term to describe the music; the riffs are at
most points thrashy, but not aggressive or brutal and fast enough to be
considered as pure thrash.
“Unleash the Energy” is the first song after the intro and this song is one
of the highlights on SoulSaviour. Really slow and melodic thrashy riffs set the
mood perfectly and Eddie Risdal’s depressive snarling/harsh vocals make the
mix ice cold. Actually, the music somewhat reminds me of a mix of later Bolt
Thrower and My Dying Bride – throw a bit Red Harvest in the mix to complete
the picture.
What about the drawbacks? Well, the album is consistent from start till finish;
that might suggest there isn’t enough variety to give this album a top score.
After many listens I still have a problem to set some of the songs apart.
However, as I mentioned earlier, the industrial elements (samples, programming)
are more clearly in the mix on SoulSaviour and that’s a step in the right
direction. In V:28’s defence though you could basically say that
“NonAnthropogenic”, “SoulSaviour” and the next, last album in this
trilogy is just one album! They are all a part of an interesting concept and
thusly the albums will use the same formula.
If you’re a fan of their debut album you’ll end up liking this album as
well. There are many enjoyable elements on this CD and V:28 is quite an unique
project which deserves your attention!
SEA
OF TRANQUILITY
Rating: 3,5 / 5
Hailing from Norway comes V:28, a pretty energetic metal
band that mixes in elements of prog, goth, thrash, black, death, and industrial
on the second album in a proposed trilogy called SoulSaviour. These guys have
the apocalyptic sound down pat, with lots of pummeling guitars, tortured vocals,
eerie keyboard soundscapes, and disturbing lyrics. Think Opeth meets Strapping
Young Lad meets Fear Factory and you have somewhat of an idea of what to expect
on SoulSaviour.
This is pretty dramatic stuff for the most part, and there are a handful of
meaty numbers here, especially the rampaging "A Prophecy Written in
Uranium", with its bleak lyrics, crushing guitar work, death vocals, and
haunting keyboard programming. The rhythmic behemoth that is "Infected By
Life" is another winner, littered with rapid fire programmed drums, gothic
death vocals, and layered guitar work. The band even goes for the juggular on
the speedy thrash of "Solid Structure Unknown", a song that has Slayer
intensity but comes across symphonic like a Dimmu Borgir. There's some solid
progressive moments on the otherwise moody goth of "As the Sky Opens",
and "Unleash the Energy" is killer black metal all the way.
Call it what you want, but SoulSaviour really doesn't fit in any one category
cleanly. If you like your black/death metal with some industrial, progressive,
and gothic overtones, then this CD will be right up your alley. Oh, and if the
music & lyrics prove to be too much of a downer for some, there's a
wonderful poster of a very sexy, scantily clad nurse if you open up the booklet
fully and turn it over. This image will surely help you get your blood pressure
back in the right direction, trust me!
VAMPIRE
MAGAZINE
"Soulsaviour" is the second part in the V:28
trilogy. The trilogy started with "NonAnthropogenic" in the year 2003
and it showed a band with a complete own sound and style. It actually is very
difficult to give a good musical description though I guess industrial post
black metal will come quite close. For the aforementioned debut album the band
had put much effort in getting the cover, lay-out, image and music to
fit well together. With success that is. And I've told it my review from
"NonAnthropogenic" already; V:28 definately managed to create
something completely new and that album even did belong to my personal
favourites from the year 2003.
Now in 2005 the story continues with "Soulsaviour...providing a bright
future". First of all I want to say that V:28 did an excellent job in
continuing the story through the cover and lay-out. For example
"NonAnthropogenic" had ten songs and "Soulsaviour"
therefore starts with track number eleven. Also the printing on the cd, which
shows number 1 to 28 continues in the same vein. On the debut album the first
ten numbers were printed thicker and brighter while on the second album the
numbers eleven to nineteen are printed thicker and brighter while the remaining
numbers are more vague to see.
Another continuation can be found on the cover. Once more the billboard
next to a road is the most important part on the cover, this time showing a sexy
nurse with the album title "Soulsaviour....providing a bright future".
Maybe this nurse will be the only 'bright future' because all land is destroyed
after the all-destroying apocalypse? The last connection I want to mention here
is that same billboard, now on the back of the cd-cover. On the debut album
there were only ten songtitles to be seen on that billboard. Once more that
billboard can be seen though now the first ten titles are fading away and only
number eleven to nineteen are clearly to be seen. There are actually even more
connections to be found though I'll leave that for you to find out! There are
more bands who have connections between albums but in all fairness, I haven't
seen one band who's done such a good job as V:28 did so far. Excellent!
But no matter how good a cover might be and no matter how well-though the
connections are between both albums, it still is the music that counts. Well,
I can assure you that V:28 once more released another great album and for me
"Soulsaviour" already belongs to my favourite albums from 2005. Just
like the previous album also this one has got a very good, heavy and clear production,
this thanks to LRZ from Red Harvest who produced the album. The sound is
actually exactly the same as "NonAnthropogenic" so also soundwise
there is a connection between both albums. The musical style is, how surprising,
also a logical continuation of the debut album. Therefore I don't see the need
in talking about each specific song, simply because the complete album must be
seen like one piece. And it is even better to play both albums after oneanother
to 'really' get into the story.
So if you're into post apocalyptic sounding industrial alike post modern black
metal than V:28 is definately thé band to check out. Both their albums are
among thé most important industrial black metal albums of all time.
The second part of a promised three-album trilogy, V:28's Soulsaviour (subtitled "Providing a Bright Future") presents an almost scientific study into how to compose a progressively industrialized, post-black metal album. That is: fuse black metal's nihilistic rawness with industrial music's conversely regimented assault (A) to serve as foundation and overall link connecting numerous styles, including jagged, thrash-based riffing (B), frequent downshifts into slower doom territory (C), and even forays into ambient sound designs (D). Under these policies, most of the album's tracks are quite easily described thus: "The Brightest Light" (D), "A Prophecy Written in Uranium" (A & B), {&"Dead Men's Choir" (C & D), "Unleash the Energy," "The Purifying Flames," and "Solid Structure Unknown" (A, C & D). And if that seems like an overly clinical or downright lazy way to go about analyzing Soulsaviour's contents (ok, so it is!), then it's only because V:28 seems to employ a similarly analytical and contrived set of methods in composing them. In fact, lone diversions from the blueprint -- and extremely subtle ones at that -- are limited to a couple of techno beat-inflected tracks ("Infected by Life" and "As the Sky Opens") and the highly effective cold-voiced recitations applied to the nicely dread-inducing "deConstructor." Take the latter offerings into account and get past the album's oft-predictable and repetitive formulations (no help from the mostly impenetrable lyrics foreseeing all manner of hellfire and damnation), and one might find it possible to ignore that insidious and disturbing sense of contrivance mentioned earlier. But the fact remains that, barring some incredible innovation waiting to be revealed by the final leg of this three-album trilogy, V:28 aren't breaking any new ground. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia
SMOTHER.NET
Take black metal, stir in some industrial, and add a
sprinkling of futuristic apocalyptic visions. Cook on high for a few minutes and
you’ve got yourself one hell of a meal named “SoulSaviour”. Hailing from
Norway, an extreme metal paradise to be sure, V:28 tend to the garden of heavy
with salty and rusty instruments. The percussion punctuates the thin cold
atmospheres of the album with precision and an equalizing pummel. Vocally it’s
more death metal than anything else but the added soundscapes and electronic
tones give it a more visceral depth than you’d imagine.
J-Sin
DARKSOUL
VII
I love when I get a CD from a band I've never heard
before. Unfortunately, that
excitement often ends in utter letdown after the first song. V:28's
"SoulSaviour" is NOT
one of those CD's. Set as the second in a series of three, this gem of
progressive
black/death metal took me by surprise and left me to hear the first of their
trilogy.
Its unique intro, begins with an industrial/electronic back beat. Later, a sound
clip of
a reporter's explanation of the first hydrogen bomb experiment. This was more
than
likely taken from the reels of historic television moments. The way he explains
it,
especially with the knowledge of the events in following it makes it quite
disturbing.
The first actual song is "Unleash the Energy". This moving track mixes
melody and
intensity while leaving behind absolute speed. This is not a slow song, but
compared to
other metal bands, it's definitely not fast. The mid break's triplet picking is
overlaid
with keyboards and vocals which subside to leave a powerful melody driven outro.
"A
Prophecy Written in Uranium" follows with intense thrash influenced
guitars. Powerful
vocals, great guitar melodies, and conservative keyboards add depth and warmth.
Some
moments are reminiscent of The Project Hate MCMXCIX's 1st album, while others
bleed of
influences from Ulver's latter years. "Infected by Life" begins with
intense guitar/kick
drum rhythms which progress into a melody laden verse. The song flows smoothly
through
riff and mood changes. The chorus line's chugs are made even heavier with the
deep,
steady double kicks while the mid-break's techno style really molds the song
into
something unique.
"The Purifying Flames" has an undeniable doom and death metal
influence. The beginning
is nothing more than harsh growls over a simple rhythm, but the song, much like
its
predecessors, is not a static being. It moves through a faster thrash style
verse into a
piano riff, into an almost Katatonia like mid-break. The immediate impact of
"Solid
Structure Unknown" is intense. The styling again resembles those of The
first Project
Hate MCMXCIX album but it doesn’t end up sounding like a clone. This track
features
layered vocals, and incredibly well written guitars. The slow, trudging
breakdown
showcases harsh screams accentuated by clean chants. Track seven, entitled
"As the Sky
Opens" begins with a heavy electronic intro which, unlike many electronic
intros,
succeeds at creating a menacing and evil mood. The main riff is simple yet
effective.
Constant double kicks drive as guitars chug away behind a speed picked melody.
"deConstructor" opens with a sound clip then bursts right into a
steady, pounding beat.
This mid tempo track is a head banger. "Dead Men's Choir" brings album
to a slow, dark
and melodic pace to end the album.
The recording quality is encompassing and rich. The instruments are well
balanced and
clear. Yes, they use a drum machine, but fuck it, it sounds good and the
structure is
well written.
Hands down, this is a good album. It's not a very fast album, that's for sure,
but keeps
a very war-like march the entire way. I hate to bring up the resemblance to the
Project
Hate, but it is there. If you like their first album and wished for less female
vocals,
then this band will really make you bang your head. For fans of The Project Hate
MCMXCIX, Slumber, and Amon Amarth.
BEAT THE BLIZZARD
Rating: 8 / 10
V:28, formely known as V:O:I:D, is back with their second
aural attack.
“SoulSaviour” is the second chapter in the saga of the destruction (or
deconstruction…?) of the world from this apocalyptic Norwegian three-piece
metal band.
V:28 convinced me back in 2003 when the debut album “Nonanthropogenic” came
out. The new record is in the similar vein as the debut as the sound and the
distant and cold atmosphere is pretty much the same. And the muscular and
revolving guitar riffs I couldn't get enough of on the debut album, is in place
as I hoped.
These riffs are one of the band's most characteristic features in the band's
songs and makes V:28 undoubtedly easy recognizable amongst other metal releases.
“SoulSaviour” clearly shows that V:28 have refined and structured their
musical expression. The drum programming is better and the musicians seem more
confident and the band hasn't become a less interesting industrial death metal
band. On the contrary, I'd say, even though there's nothing new in songs 11 to
19 compared to the first 10 songs on the debut album, except short guest
appearances from cult bands like Deutsch Nepal and Raison D'etre.
The next album is the closing act in the band's destruction trilogy and I'm sure
that V:28 knows how to destroy us all with another great eight apocalyptic metal
anthems…
I like being destroyed by this band and while being destroyed by
“SoulSaviour” I'll be waiting in suspense for the band's final eight
destroying steps to complete their mission...
SUBTERRA
- SATANS LIEBLINGSMAGAZIN
Rating: 8,5 / 10
A V:28 tagsága sokat tett, hogy néhány
általános tradícióval szakítson, viszont túl messzire nem kell nézni,
hogy élvezhető fókuszt találjunk velük kapcsolatban. Norvégia bizonyos
szempontból sokkal behatárolhatóbb terület az undergroundon belül, mint
szomszédjai; Svéd vagy Finnország. Norvégiában fémzenét csinálni
egyszerre védjegy, dics és teher. Jelent ez valami homályosan körülírható
megelőlegezett hitelt, igazán sötét atmoszférát, és talán még
idesorolható maga a technika és a megszólalás milyensége is. Igen, ők is a
legészakibb állam szülöttei és alkotói, és így hangzóanyagaik vizsgálata
közben elsőre meglepődhetünk: újabb innovatív banda ténykedik az
autentikus black metal hazájában.
Támpontként az
Enslaved – Isa lemezét hoznám fel. Progresszív death/black metal igazán
kellemesen karcos megszólalással, öblösséggel, precíz és egyúttal ízes
játékkal, ízlésesen használt szintetizátorral fűszerezve, plusz egy csöppnyi
elektronikával hígítva. Így körülírva, már nem beszélhetünk hagyományőrző
zenéről, és talán egyesek számára riasztó is lehet, ha nem társulna ezen
elemekhez néhány jól eltalált ponton igazán szép északi dallamokkal,
hangulatokkal a Soulsaviour.
Még mindig nem lenne pontos az ajánló által közvetített összkép, ha a
további fontos információkat kihagynám. A V:28 a múlton való merengés
helyett az emberiség nekrológját foglalja apokaliptikus erejű keretbe. Végső
háború, betegség, nyomor, diriutio et renovatio, új világrend és további
ehhez kapcsolható fogalmakat jár körül a zenekar 2. nagylemeze. Aki esetleg
ismeri a bemutatkozó NonAnthropogenic-et, sok változást nem fedezhet fel,
kissé több az él a gitárokban, és nem túl nagy lépéssel ugyan, de a
dalok is jobbak lettek, kevesebb az üresjárat.
Ami nem volt túl
megkapó számomra a bandával kapcsolatban, azt az image teljesen amatőr
militarista képvilága jelentette, és ugyan a katonás jelleg megmaradt, de az
új promofotók már sokkal élvezhetőbbek, a live akciókban is a kommandós
ruha, töltényöv és az álcázó arcfestés szolgál jelmez gyanánt, hol több,
hol kevesebb komolysággal tudom szemlélni őket.
A legénység 3 tagot számlál; Eddie Risdal (gitár, ének), Kristoffer Oustad
(gitár, programozás) valamint Atle Johansen (basszusgitár). A felállásból
következtethetünk az ütős személyzet hiányára, ami csak akkor tűnt fel,
mikor a stábtagokat vizslattam. Ebből is leszűrhetjük a konklúziót: a
digitális dobos jelen esetben hiányérzet nélkül végzi teendőjét. A
futurisztikus megközelítéshez ideálisan alkalmazkodik, nincsenek bonyolult törések,
vagy szélvészgyors csapkodás, csak rideg és metsző középtempó, olykor a
lábdob pörög fel, hogy kövesse a szaggatott riffeléseket, fémesen szóló
cinek, ahogy az illik a jövőt festő vízióknál. Hatásként a Fear
Factory-s Raymond Herrera-t említhetném meg, ha ezt minden komikum nélkül
megtehetném, így nevét csak a lapot kitölteni szándékozó
pszeudopublicista trükként biggyeszteném ide.
rás közben legtöbbször az Infected by Life és a Solid Structure Unknown kerültek
végighallgatásra, vagy egyes részeik visszapörgetésére, viszont nem
mondhatom, hogy kiugróan más vagy jobb nóták lennének ezek, szerencsére
kiváló az egész mű, amennyire könnyen emészthetőnek tűnik elsőre, mégsem
fog azonnal belevésődni agyunkba.
Változatos, nagyívű zene tehetséges zenészektől, és ha legközelebb a
legjobb pillanataik esszenciális kivonatát készítik el, biztos, hogy maximális
pontszámot fogok adni.
THE
STREETS METAL WEBZINE
Rating: 9 / 10
NORSK
Det gĺr tid mellom hver gang jeg fĺr gĺsehud for tiden, men sĺ kom V:28 pĺ
banen! V:28 lager Death Metal akkurat slik jeg vil ha den! Helsjuke melodier
avbrutt av grisebra samplinger. Med SoulSaviour er de tilbake der
NonAnthropogenic sluttet. Dette er helt klart en av de beste Extreme banda som
norge har fostret pĺ lange tider. Etter at band som Cadaver (savner dere) ga
seg, er det en trřst at band som dette bringer norges Death Metal horde stolt
videre! SoulSaviour har 9 spor, og alle har sitt lille geniale sćrpreg!
Favorittene er nok allikevel ĺpningslĺta ”The Brightest Light” med sine
geniale melodi partier og den langt roligere ”The Purifying Flames”. Det er
krig, V:28 gĺr i front, og det er ingenting som stopper
dem….genialt..hehe
ENGLISH
There’s not often music gives me goosebums these days, but then V:28 came
along! V:28 makes Death Metal just the way i want it. Sick melodioes and
fuckin’ great samples. With SoulSaviour they’re back where NonAnthropogenic
ended. This is one of the best extreme bands from Norway these days, after my
opinion.After the break of bands like Cadaver (miss you), it’s a comfort that
bands like this brings the norwegian Death Metal scene proudly forward!
SoulSaviour’s got 9 tracks, and they all have they’re own originality. My
favorites still are the first track “The Brightest Light” with it’s
genious melodies and the far slower “The Purifying Flames”. There’s a war
going on, V:28 is in the frontline, and there’s nothing stopping
them..genious..haha
TERRORIZER
Rating: 8,5 / 10
Right from its intro, courtesy of Deutsch Nepal’s Lina Baby Doll, it becomes
apparent that ’SoulSaviour’ is gonna be one ride out of the ordinary. Granted,
it shares several traits with its semi-lauded predecessor ‘NonAnthropogenic’,
but it certainly ups the ante on it while throwing in a barrage of new ideas in
the process. In short, this Arendal, Norway duo cum trio have grown considerably
as songwriters and producers, broadening the canvas and traversing new depths,
enriching their vision manyfold in comparison with the debut. It’s still
unmistakeable V:28 chugga – spacey, apocalyptic death industrialmetal sumthin’
[$italics] with a clear nod to indusmetal combos Samael and Red Harvest. Yet for
all the cred-name dark ambient input, obscure film samples and occasional
rave/techno influences, they have at the same time turned more metal on us
(notice the Slayer opening of ‘A Prophecy Written In Uranium’), only their metal
is hella more interesting than most of their contemporaries’. ‘SoulSaviour’ is
simply more of everything that’s cool about V:28, and if they can top this with
their third installment, that album is gonna be one fucking black hole.
EINAR SJURSŘ
LUNAR HYPNOSIS
Rating: 8,5 / 10
V:28
is finally back after 2 years with the follow-up of “NonAnthropogenic”. At first
sight not much has changed, other than the fact that they recruited Atle
Johansen to play bass. They sticked with Vendlus and LRZ from
Red harvest helped out with production again. Looks can deceive though.
The album starts off with track 11, picking up where the last album left and thus continuing their concept that the world will come to an end in 28 tracks. The track is an intro made by Lina baby doll of Deutsch nepal. So it seems that just like on their debut, V:28 managed to get some nice guest-contributions. Next up is “Unleash the energy”. The first thing that drawed my attention is the much richer and fuller sound compared to the bleak and stale sound of their debut. This is a good thing, cause even though their debut is an ok album, it suffered a bit from that bleak production cause it made it sound a bit monotonous.
Musically they stay on the same path: bringing a mix of black and death metal with electronic drums and industrial elements added to it. It seemed they also incorporated some thrash elements - read old Slayer riffing - in their sound (A prophecy written in Uranium). This all just adds to the more varied sound they create on this album. One of the things that makes me like V:28 more than similar bands is the fact they incorporate (catchy) melodies in their songs. The album ends with “Dead men’s choir”: an instrumental track that ends in an outro done by Peter Andersson of Raison d’ętre and with contributions on percussion by Lars Pedersen of When. The artwork was done by Trine and Kim this time and it looks great. So great that it will probably make some people drool when they see it.
Compared to their debut this follow-up album has made a lot of progress and already makes me anxious for the next album. The end is coming nearer (only 9 tracks left) and you better make sure you heard this album by then. Hurry, cause you might get one of those neat posters Vendlus is giving away with the first 100 copies (and drool even more).
Josef K.
HEAVYMETAL.NO
Rating: 8 / 10
Du
verden hvor V:28 innfrir! Langt om lenge og lengre enn langt har det tatt for
bandet ĺ fřlge opp debuten, ogsĺ den pĺ
Vendlus records, dette Amerikanske
selskapet.
Trioen fra Arendal har kravlet langt ned i sinnet for ĺ finne formelen som
skulle til nĺr de stod ovenfor oppfřlgeren til "NonAnthropogenic; a view into a
dying existence..." fra 2003.
LRZ (Red Harvest) har ogsĺ denne gange styrt bandet i produksjonen, og nok en
gang har lydbildet blitt en real godbit. Denne gangen er det mye mer gitarbasert
fřler jeg. Riffene er geniale av og til. Thrashen sitter lřst som juling og selv
om det av og til er vel lik vokal (som er lokalisert i deathland) er det en
fortreffelig sammensetning. Det vokale er veldig dystert og fremmer V:28's
dunkle endetidsforlřsning.
Tempoene er jevne, de er ikke sĺ altfor varierte, men det er en konseptfřlelse
etter endt lřp. Skiva er jo ogsĺ del to av V:28's řdeleggelse av verden. Hvordan
siste del vil bli er det bare ĺ glede seg til og ĺ spekulere i.
Det er noe litt annerledes med gjengen denne gangen fřler jeg, de er ikke fullt
sĺ monster og harde, men litt lettere og velfungerende. Kanskje til og med
hakket mer tilgjengelig, noe som trolig vil ĺpne et par dřrer til hos publikum.
Jeg fřler det litt vanskelig ĺ gĺ inn pĺ enkle lĺter, det er et album, som sist,
som mĺ fordřyes helt. Det oser midtempo-Slayer av mange grunnideer, da uten
Arya-vokal, men allikevel solid nok! Kanskje neste gang man kan hente inn en
vokal nummer to? Litt mer pitch og thrasha? Da hadde jeg bladd opp full pott
uten ĺ nřle tror jeg.
Jeg finner et par kutt litt "off" - ikke isolert, men mer som biter som ikke
helt finner plassen i flyten i skivas livslřp. Lĺt nummer 14, Infected by life
var en av disse. Mye třft gitararbeid, men kanskje litt ujevnt kvalitet alt i
alt. Ogsĺ lĺt #16, Solid Structures Unknown falt litt bort for meg. Den var litt
intetsigende.
Sĺnn, da var det bare positivt igjen ĺ melde. :) Det som kan vćre et aber for
mange er at skiva jobber seg vel jevnt i utvikling. Det skjer lite fra lĺt til
lĺt, men det er som sagt en knusende totalitet og et konsept som fĺr fokuset
bort fra det ĺ forlange hitlĺter eller det ĺ mĺtte dra ut musikken som en
isolert faktor. Man fĺr et band som har en organisk střyp og som vektlegger feel
og flyt like mye som musikken.
V:28 har gjort det som jeg hadde hĺpet pĺ, dratt alt et steg videre uten ĺ křdde
opp det de hadde. Apokalyptisk metal leveres her av et band som bĺde er
stilsikkert og som framstĺr som et velsmurt maskineri.
Dette er en 80% skive. En sterk, sterk 80% skive.
Og coveret er en godbit, helt fjernt fra det jeg hadde forventet. Bak stĺr duoen
Trine og Kim - et radarpar som har jobbet med mange metalband, og som er
utrolige i det ĺ kreere regelrett kunst. Sjekk designerne pĺ nett
HER. Sĺ fort křen tillater det dukker det opp et
intervju med disse to her pĺ heavymetal.no.
Og kan et eller annet distro eller selskap snart fikse lisens i Norge? Det er
for dumt ĺ se et slikt band pĺ import her hjemme. Og ihvertfall nĺr sĺ mange
middels band fĺr avtaler og som garantert V:28 klarer ĺ overgĺ i salg.
Og man kan bestille skiva rett fra bandet, mailadressen til
Kristoffer fĺr du her. :)
YJMetal
MONSTER MAGAZINE
Rating: 4.0 / 6
Debuten til sřrlendingene i
V:28 hadde en del positive trekk, noe de har rendyrket mer pĺ oppfřlgeren. De
stiller igjen med Red Harvests LZR som produsent, og det er ikke sĺ langt unna
Red Harvest "SoulSaviour" ligger. Hakket mer thrash impulser og Slayer riff
hřrer med, samt et mer streitere uttrykk har de. Likevel er "SoulSaviour" et
skritt i riktig retning, og det er bĺde mange gode riff og ideer V:28 serverer
pĺ skiva. Fortsetter utviklingen denne veien kan dette bli riktig sĺ bra. Mer
info pĺ:
www.vendlus.com
(Martin Kvam)