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░ ██ ██ Artist: Banisher ██ ██
▓ █░░ ■█ Album: Scarcity █■ ░░█
■ █▓▀ █ Year: 2013 █ ▀▓█ ░
█ ▓ Rel. Date: 2017-08-10 ▓ █
▒ ▒ Genre: Death Metal ▒ ▒
█▄ ░ Label: Unquiet Records ░ ▄█
░ █▄ ░ Source: CD ░ ▄█
░ █▓ Type: Album ▓█ ░
▓ █ Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo █ ░ ▓
▓ █ █ ░ ▓
▄ ■ ■ ▓ ■
░█ █░ ▀
█ Please meet Hubert Wiecek, a rising star in the █
█ Polish technical/progressive death metal pantheon, █
█ an axeman who stands proud beside the other two █
█ guitar wizards from his homeland, Jacek Hiro █
█ (Sceptic, Never) and Artur Grabowski aka Xan █
█ (Hellfire, Vedonist). The guy has all the rightful █
█ intentions on catching up with his renowned █
█ compatriots as apart from the band under scrutiny █
█ here he also has another worthy project, █
█ Redemptor, a technical/progressive death metal █
█ formation which he launched a bit earlier than █
█ this one, and is working on both fronts at █
█ presentà █
█ No complaints at all as the music of both outfits █
█ is nothing short of great the more melodic, more █
█ progressive-prone overtones left for Redemptor, █
█ and the more experimental, less orthodox strokes █
█ more widely covered here. ôSlaughterhouseö was a █
█ splashing debut, an immaculate display of █
█ technical death metal mastery Wiecek still playing █
█ by the rules there with a few less conventional █
█ additives scattered around. Those are only too █
█ well organized on the album reviewed here as the █
█ jarring more abrasive riffage on the opening ôWar █
█ on Drugsö starts scratching the listenerÆs nerves, █
█ the more modern guitar sound still working fine █
█ creating several apocalyptic landscapes, the █
█ excellent melodic leads providing a great contrast █
█ with the more dispassionate rhythm-section. The █
█ title-track combines more laid-back progressive █
█ overtones (the beginning) with the staple brutal █
█ deathy outbursts with some psychedelic dissonance █
█ entering the scene as well as to a sheer curious █
█ effect. ôDystopiaö is a ôdystopianö futuristic █
█ shredder the guys brutalizing the environment █
█ playing quite fastÆn tight the slower sections █
█ turning into virtuous technical cannonades before █
█ robotic Meshuggah-esque chugs put an end to them. █
█ ôBlack Bloodö carries on with the more mechanized █
█ delivery, but brutal blast-beats tear the █
█ landscape with twiddly, staccato riffs later █
█ coming to play before more sterile indifference █
█ takes over towards the end. The modernist approach █
█ is partially left behind on ôParadigm Shiftö where █
█ the ôparadigmö indeed ôshiftsö towards the more █
█ classic delivery from the debut the band shredding █
█ with the utmost precision incorporating intricate █
█ mid-tempo riffs with abrupt outbursts of even more █
█ technical aggression the latter recalling █
█ Necrophagist and Suffocation. After this flawless █
█ shredfest the band donÆt slouch, but continue with █
█ ôExceptionalismö, a speedy brisk technicaller with █
█ hyper-active overlapping rhythms flying from all █
█ sides creating dizziness, the several more █
█ mechanical additives and the dazzling closing lead █
█ section putting an end to the hallucinations. █
█ ôCorporatocracyö starts moshing from the get-go █
█ with both volatile and rigid riff-formulas the █
█ ôhygienicö setting working just fine for both █
█ approaches as the more classic technical █
█ arrangements win the ôbattleö thanks to a superb █
█ vortex-like pirouette in the middle which gets █
█ repeated throughout before a spacey futuristic █
█ stroke finalizes the whole saga. Watch out for the █
█ closing joke track ôBenny Hillö which is a █
█ lightning fast, hardcore-ish variation of the main █
█ theme from the TV show. █
█ A mechanization process in the death metal midsts █
█ started in the new millennium, just like that in a █
█ compulsive impromptu-like fashion, which was kind █
█ of a bounce off the 90Æs trends as those sterile █
█ mechanical riff-formulas were way trendier some 10 █
█ years back. Several prominent outfits (Terminal █
█ Function, Vedonist, Wormed, Ulcerate, Decapitated, █
█ etc.) fell prey to this unexpected transformation █
█ campaign, including Theory in Practice themselves █
█ on the freshly released ôCrescendo Dezignö EP. █
█ Thankfully our friends here know very well how far █
█ they could reach in this direction, and pull the █
█ brakes at the right time, before surrendering █
█ hearts and souls to the robotÆs ôrebellionö. The █
█ combination between the two approaches works quite █
█ well for most of the time although some would by █
█ all means miss the blistering guitar fireworks █
█ from the debut. As a result we have arguably the █
█ best offering from this trend which may even keep █
█ the purists happy. █
█ Certainly, the anticipation was that the band █
█ would go further down the mechanical rabbit hole █
█ on the next instalment, but to the fansÆ delight █
█ this didnÆt happen. ôOniric Delusionsö bravely █
█ held to the same blend even enlarging the classic █
█ canonsÆ share for the creation of another great █
█ multi-layered, dexterously woven recording. Wiecek █
█ should be proud of himself for holding a premier █
█ position on the technical death metal horizon, █
█ also with Redemptor which latest affair (ôThe █
█ Jugglernautö, 2014) was another admirable entry █
█ into the fodder. ôBanishedö? I donÆt think so; █
█ more like appreciated, and why not even glorifiedà █
█ █
█ --- █
█ █
█ Some forms of music are harder to review than █
█ others. This is a fact, and it doesn't necessarily █
█ even correlate with how challenging the music █
█ itself might be. For a genre like tech-death (or █
█ prog, or most forms of jazz, for that matter) a █
█ high standard of musicianship goes with the █
█ territory; it's a rigid expectation, to the point █
█ where technical excellence might still pass for █
█ mediocrity in the given genre. I don't think this █
█ is unfair either; when we're listening to an album █
█ like Banisher's Scarcity, the band's undeniable █
█ tightness as a unit virtually goes without █
█ question. Rather, to tell whether a tech-death █
█ album is worth its salt or not, we have to keep █
█ ears open for the less apparent elements in the █
█ sound. Namely songwriting- and if that fails, a █
█ healthy dose of innovation always helps. █
█ Banisher are among that majority group of █
█ technical death metal bands I've heard that █
█ astound me from a technical perspective, but █
█ otherwise fail to resonate with me. It might be █
█ said that Scarcity one-ups the truly average fare █
█ of the genre by incorporating a slightly wider █
█ range of influences than the typical genre go-to's █
█ likeCryptopsy and Dying Fetus, but it's not enough █
█ to keep me interested for long. Scarcity keeps █
█ both ears busy for the space of a half hour, but █
█ any lasting impressions are minimal. █
█ For all of the energy and ideas Banisher inject █
█ into their music, the songwriting feels somewhat █
█ underwhelming. This is something many of their █
█ tech-death ilk may be accused of; technique and █
█ aggression are aplenty, but there's nothing to █
█ most of the songs to distinguish them from one █
█ another. Where are the memorable riffs, the █
█ spectacular dynamics? Technical death metal isn't █
█ particularly heavy on either, but the best █
█ tech-death always is. To give them fair credit; █
█ Banisher have a stronger sense of variety than the █
█ average band, but the amorphous shifts between █
█ core, grind and tech influences are rarely bold █
█ enough to make the diversity interesting unto █
█ itself. The way Banisher interprets these █
█ potentially night-and-day styles on Scarcity, █
█ they're just slightly varying shades of the same █
█ aggression. █
█ Although there's a certain invigoration to hear a █
█ band jump between chugging breakdowns, brushfire █
█ soloing and quasi-thrash intensity, the best █
█ demonstration of Banisher as composers comes with █
█ the minute-long 'interlude' tracks. The mellow █
█ reprieve from the tech-y information overload of █
█ their mainstay style would be welcome halfway █
█ through the album regardless of the interludes' █
█ quality, but there's a fantastic sense of melody █
█ and atmosphere in them that I would have loved to █
█ have seen more on the album. █
█ While I have some trouble grasping onto a single █
█ riff or idea on the album after the fact, it █
█ should be said that Banisher keep their music █
█ engaging throughout. Although the hookless █
█ approach feels cold as a listener, the onward █
█ march of riffs is impressively intuitive. There's █
█ little sense of the 'cut and paste' idea █
█ progressions that so many lesser tech death acts █
█ are plagued by. While I'm not entirely sure if █
█ this is a good thing or not, the most vivid █
█ recollection I think I'll have of the album in the █
█ future is the last track; Banisher do a █
█ ridiculous, brutal death metal cover of the "Benny █
█ Hill" theme, seemingly managing to amp up their █
█ usual aggression just a bit more for the occasion. █
█ Yes, it's a lost opportunity that Banisher █
█ squandered their album's climax on a joke, but █
█ it's a good joke, and one that's bound to surprise █
█ you even when you know it's coming. █
█ Scarcity is a good album for its style, and for █
█ what its worth, the kind of condensed aggression █
█ Banisher have brought to this album has been a █
█ welcome change from my largely atmospheric █
█ listening as of late. As a band, it also shouldn't █
█ go unmentioned that Banisher are very tight █
█ technically; there were many times listening to █
█ the album where guest drummer Lukaz Krzesiewicz's █
█ snare-heavy delivery reminded me of Lykathea █
█ Aflame's TomßÜ Corn- a comparison any death █
█ metaller would be honoured by. Scarcity does █
█ little yet-unheard with technical death metal, but █
█ for those of us that enjoy the genre's █
█ mile-per-second intensity, that shouldn't be █
█ enough to rule it out. █
▓ ▓
▒ ▒
░ 1. War on Drugs 3:22 ░
░ 2. Scarcity 4:45 ░
░ 3. Vanity 1:10 ░
░ 4. Dystopia 3:52 ░
░ 5. Black Blood 4:06 ░
░ 6. Incentives 1:06 ░
░ 7. Paradigm Shift 4:25 ░
░ 8. Exceptionalism 3:22 ░
░ 9. Corporatocracy 3:19 ░
░ 10. Benny Hill 1:12 ░
░ 30:39 ░
░ ▒ ▒
▓ █ ░ ▓ ░
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