Featured Review #39: COHOL - 裏現-Rigen-

[Zeus 7997]

Artist: COHOL Album: 裏現 1. 冷たい石 -Frozen- 2. 下部構造 –Infrastructure- 3. 暗君 –Chaos Ruler– 4. 地に堕ちる –Depressive– 5. 葬送行進 –Funeral March– 6. 絶えぬ火 –Endless Ember– 7. 病の元型 –Arche Pathogen– 8. 急性期の終わり –The End of Acute Phase-

Rating: | Colder than a cast iron toilet on the frosty side of an iceberg.

 

Prepare yourself for black metal with the fury of one thousand winter storms. If the first thing you think of when you hear 'black metal' is face paint, high pitched shrieking, furious drumming, fuzzy guitar, firebreathing and other grotesque imagery, and a do-it-yourself lo-fi aesthetic, I would normally chide you for thinking there's no black metal that thinks outside the box. There are plenty of bands that do just this, and some even play music that wouldn't even be classified as black metal to the untrained ear. In this one particular circumstance, however, you would be somewhat right. COHOL is a band halfway between the roots of black metal and the state of the scene today and because of this it is hard to find another band quite like them. They pick and choose which elements of black metal to use and which to discard. Compared to many other similar sounding bands, they do not rely on shock value and gimmicks to compensate for what couldn't be communicated musically. Not that I have anything against that, but COHOL are more the "stand around in a thicket of trees or in an alley and look mysterious" kind of fellas. They always have kept to themselves, releasing news only when appropriate, but they do not entirely shun "the mainstream". 裏現 is the textbook example of what a great black metal record is like in spirit, even if the band couldn't work all the warts out in five years.

Everything I need to know is communicated through the anguish and despair that drips from each track. It's been five years since their first album 空洞 -Kuudou-, and 裏現 -Rigen- is a clear evolution upon their older style. Touring with extreme black metal bands like PORTAL during all this time has had a significant effect on their style. This time around, COHOL has compressed their influences to fit firmly within the realm of black metal. 裏現 -Rigen- is much more focused than it's predecessor 空洞 -Kuudou-, but it's also much more homogenous. The pig squeals, thrash and hardcore influences are lessened in favor of more tremolos and blast beats. These elements are still there, and are often used during transitions or to change the flow, but they are not as omnipresent as they were before. There are only a few of these moments present, but these and the more minimalistic sections of songs go a long way in mitigating what would otherwise be an exhausting experience.

From the blistering opening of "Infrastructure" to the aptly-named "Depressive" to the absolutely crushing end track "The End of Acute Phase", every song is incredibly well-crafted while still retaining some uniqueness. I sense a lot of ISIS, GODFLESH, Sunn O))), Burzum, and even Boris influence thorughout all eight tracks here, but the music easily expands upon this to include so many different dynamics at times this doesn't feel like black metal. The music can turn from a whirlwind of fury into subdued lament without even so much as blinking, and the best part of it all is how organic the depression feels. It doesn't rewrite the rule book, but COHOL demonstrates that there's some uncovered musical ambition left in black metal. I haven't found a band able to fuse genres like this in quite some time.

The most pressing issue with 裏現 -Rigen- is that COHOL embraces the lo-fi aesthetics of black metal when they want to. Parts of "Infrastructure" and "Endless Ember" sound like they were recorded in a dingy room, but in comparison "Chaos Ruler" and "Funeral March" have such crisp, textured atmospheres. This dynamic definitely doesn't hold well across the entire album. Each time it the quality noticeably dips or rises, it's distracting and pulls the listener out of the experience. This is my biggest pet peeve about the entire album.

Questionable production choices aside, 裏現 -Rigen- is a bold album. To the uninitated, this has the potential to challenge everything you thought you knew about black metal. For the familiar, this is a must listen and one of the top metal albums I've heard all year, tied with Sigh's Graveward. Three cheers to another elegant yet brutal album signifying promising things to come from an otherwise unknown black metal band from Japan.

...or would it be "three screams of agony"?

Support the band!

Purchase 裏現 -Rigen- here!

[The Reverend 3566]

Damn good review of a damn good album.

 

If you're here mostly for the VK (which I am I guess...) check this album out anyway and then play it for your metalhead friends that complain when you put on japanese shit... they'll thank you.

 

Speaking of Boris and ISIS... I am supremely jealous of anybody who makes it out to these shows:

 

 

That fuckin' line-up! And good to see COHOL getting equal billing (or at least an equal-sized logo) as those other bands.

[blackdoll 907]

the screams sound like arise in stability

[Zeus 7997]

Damn good review of a damn good album.

 

If you're here mostly for the VK (which I am I guess...) check this album out anyway and then play it for your metalhead friends that complain when you put on japanese shit... they'll thank you.

 

Speaking of Boris and ISIS... I am supremely jealous of anybody who makes it out to these shows:

 

 

That fuckin' line-up! And good to see COHOL getting equal billing (or at least an equal-sized logo) as those other bands.

Jesus Christ that lineup! And both days too! Shit I wish I could go

 

 

the screams sound like arise in stability

These screams are pretty typical of black metal. If you like them there are a few other bands that sound similar to the both of them. Maybe someone can recommend something if you're interested in exploring further.