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░ ██ ██ Artist: Naumachia ██ ██
▓ █░░ ■█ Album: Machine of Creation █■ ░░█
■ █▓▀ █ Year: 2015 █ ▀▓█ ░
█ ▓ Rel. Date: 2017-08-18 ▓ █
▒ ▒ Genre: Death Metal ▒ ▒
█▄ ░ Label: Via Nocturna ░ ▄█
░ █▄ ░ Source: CD ░ ▄█
░ █▓ Type: Album ▓█ ░
▓ █ Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo █ ░ ▓
▓ █ █ ░ ▓
▄ ■ ■ ▓ ■
░█ █░ ▀
█ Naumachia's Machine of Creation initially appealed █
█ to me due to the ephemeral industrial vibe and █
█ electronic swaddling that encompasses the virile █
█ black/death mass of competent riffage. The more I █
█ listen to it, the more I begin to appreciate the █
█ band as a whole, but even with all of the trinkets █
█ of terror at their disposal, it's a heady task █
█ standing out from the stagnated pack nowadays. The █
█ album has a murky, dystopian vibe that reek of █
█ sulphur and razed bodies, with a mechanical, █
█ groove-inflected jaunt not wholly unlike Myrkskog █
█ or maybe Zyklon. There is also a palpable modern █
█ Polish death metal influence here, so the fact █
█ that the members hail from Norway and Poland is █
█ absolutely no surprise to me. At its best, Machine █
█ of Creation sounds like Crionics with a smidgen █
█ less groove and more appealing song structure, █
█ replete with decent lead encapsulation and meaty █
█ production values, albeit without sounding █
█ excessively polished and sterile. My ear is █
█ generally attuned to less predictable patterns, █
█ but the roiling death metal constituent of the █
█ band's sound is capable if a bit standard. The way █
█ the synths are laid over the rest evoke a █
█ cerebral, cacophonic sonic palate that is █
█ stretched to fit the jagged stylistic confines of █
█ the death/black mashup. Vocals also teeter back █
█ and forth between a voluminous growl and █
█ ichor-laced sneer. █
█ The track "Multiple Personality" represents as lot █
█ of what Naumachia have to offer, including the █
█ madcap riffing assault and generously radiated █
█ vocals, coming at the listener from all measure of █
█ angles. Dissonance is thick enough to taste, but █
█ not to the point of coming off as trite or at the █
█ cost of the riffs' collective bite. The rusted █
█ edge of the riffs is still sharp enough to crank █
█ the bloodletting, and the modern death/groove █
█ cadence elicited within is testament to this on █
█ most tracks. Drums are upfront and busy, free to █
█ crank the murky discord on idiosyncratic blackened █
█ scorchers like "Scorched Earth" (heh, almost █
█ caught myself there), with sterile, airtight █
█ tremolos germinating within the industrialized █
█ confines. Parts of this remind me of Thy Disease, █
█ almost bordering on straight up industrial black █
█ metal. But no matter what avenue Naumachia press, █
█ they tend to excel or at least stand their ground █
█ aptly. Major key melodies are foreign to this █
█ album, but that doesn't mean there is any real █
█ shortage of memorable licks and motifs. The █
█ brooding end of "Scorched Earth" is an example of █
█ this, fused with electronic leads that buzz all █
█ about. █
█ Machine of Creation isn't a modern masterpiece, █
█ but it is one of the better Polish death metal █
█ exports I've come across, almost perfectly █
█ displaying why I enjoy this scene so much. The █
█ band doesn't partake in a war of attrition through █
█ pure technicality, but the dexterous, swinging █
█ chords and stuttering machine gun chugging is █
█ precise as fuck and excels in lockstep with the █
█ focused drumming. The turbulent, tremulous drive █
█ of compact visceral crunchers like "Primal █
█ Instinct" fuse ascending death metal fret-crackers █
█ with babbling electronics and other eclectic fare, █
█ and that is only one of a handful of strong █
█ impressions made throughout Machine of Creation. █
█ Lyfthrasyr is another parallel that immediately █
█ comes to mind, even though Naumachia are slightly █
█ lacking in melodic aptitude and poignant synth █
█ utilization compared to the former. Still, this █
█ album really kills it and fans of modern death █
█ metal need to check this out. Don't let the █
█ electronics scare you away. █
▓ ▓
▒ ▒
░ 1. Aging Sun 5:00 ░
░ 2. Multiple Personality 3:24 ░
░ 3. Scorched Earth 5:22 ░
░ 4. Dawn of Man 1:48 ░
░ 5. Primal Instinct 3:41 ░
░ 6. Terror Machine 4:04 ░
░ 7. Lost 5:43 ░
░ 8. Destroyers 6:05 ░
░ 9. Frag-Men-Ted 2:26 ░
░ 10. Amnesia 4:44 ░
░ 42:17 ░
░ ▒ ▒
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