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Absenth - Revelation

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Absenth - Kill my dreams

Russian industrial metal band Absenth have been around since 2001, and started off playing melodic doom and death metal before transitioning into the sound they have now. While “industrial metal” can mean a lot of different things, on the group’s latest full length Erotica 69 they skew more towards a Rammstein/Combichrist type of sound that has more of a rock sound than metal. It’s a release that has some potential but there are far too many moments that blur together and as a result it’s a disc that listeners may not remember that much of once they’ve turned it off.

Let me start off by saying that there isn’t anything fundamentally wrong with Erotica 69. Like many of the other industrial metal/rock bands out there, the band builds pulsing electronic beats as the base of their sound and then layers heavier, distorted guitars over top of them. The album has the type of highly polished production that gives both of these elements prominent airtime, but the biggest problem is that everything comes off sounding a little too similar. Absenth does try some different things with their riffs and beats throughout the album, and while there were some darker tinged passages that grabbed my attention they never seemed to last long enough before the band transitioned back into the overly familiar chugging riffs. The gothic tinged moments of songs like “Motorfest” are arguably the moments that stand out the most, but overall I just didn’t quite feel that spark that I have felt from some of the more engaging industrial metal.

Absenth’s lead singer Oleg Govorov goes for a cleaner pitch rather than the harsh screaming you hear in some industrial material, but his entire performance is run through a number of electronic filters to give them a different sound. Despite the fact that he’s not screaming, Govorov utilizes such a low clean pitch throughout the album that it gives off an aggressive vibe on almost every single track. I could see it being an acquired taste for some listeners, but I felt that the combination of the gruff vocals and electronic manipulations worked quite well and was one of the areas where the group did stand out. All of the tracks on Erotica 69 are sung in English with the exception of the final track “Absenth” which takes the first song on the album and gives it a Russian mix. I understand this was probably done to give the band some broader appeal, but think it would interesting if they further mixed the two languages on future releases.

Although I didn’t dislike the time I spent listening to Erotica 69, there weren’t quite enough songs that truly had riffs or electronic sections that truly grabbed me and encouraged repeat listens. Absenth’s gothic overtones and occasional exploration into other styles works well, but they seem a little too quick to head back to the tried and true industrial metal ideas. The group does deserve credit for the strong production values though, and it’s possible some of you out there might find this a bit more engaging than I did.

Rewiev on ABSENTH - "Erotica 69" by Chris Dahlberg, portal "CosmosGaming", USA

01 - Absenth

02 - Erotica 69

03 - Wishmaster

04 - Virus

05 - Left click to play

06 - Motorfest

07 - We are here

08 - Forum bleeds

09 - Rose and bat

ABSENTH - one of the most famous industrial / cyber-metal bands of the Russian stage, the flagship Cyber ​​Metal genre in the Central Black Earth region of Russia.
Contemporary hit music and great technical performance is not just marked by the positive reviews from music critics all over the world. 10 years, the band has an active concert activity in Russia and CIS countries.

Early work of the band is sustained in the directions Melodic Doom, Death, Modern Gothic metal.
Today ABSENTH is a post-apocalyptic fusion of metal and electronics, organically combining the best of the world of monsters such as Rammstein, Deathstars, Oomph!, The Kovenant, Marilyn Manson and even The Prodigy!
Lyrics diverse, with a touch of mysticism. Recently, more and more texts have addressed the existence of the world after a nuclear apocalypse: radiation, the last surviving bastions of rusty, crossing the alien DNA, androids, the mass exodus from planet earth dwellers, etc.
Live shows are designed in the same style: cyber armor, masks, respirators, hoses, computers, cyborgs and colorful fireworks - an unforgettable spectacle, transporting the viewer into the near future of our planet. What's there to tell? By the need to listen at least once, to see it with my own eyes the future and this band will long remain one of the favorite in play-list for your player!

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