Atomikylä - Keräily review
Band: | Atomikylä |
Album: | Keräily |
Style: | Drone, Psychedelic doom metal |
Release date: | April 2016 |
01. Katkos
02. Risteily
03. Pakoputki
There is something potent looming on the horizon, a deadly haze of radiation. Beware the Atomic Village.
Those unfamiliar with the name of Atomikylä will likely have their internal bells of familiarity going off when its members are mentioned, the band being something of a psychedelic super group, the grand result of the collective talents of Vesa Ajomo and Jukka Rämänen of Dark Buddha Rising and Toni Hietamäki and Juho Vanhanen of Oranssi Pazuzu. While their 2014 Erkale debut more or less maintained a fine balance between the sounds of the musicians' original bands, the one thing most noticeable with the follow up that is Keräily is that on this album, Atomikylä seem to be leaning much more towards the sound of Dark Buddha Rising than that of Oranssi Pazuzu. As is evident from the massive opener that is "Katkos," the music here is heavier, doomier, and more repetitive, seeming to be in more of a "drone doom" vein than anything else. And yet another shift that should most definitely be applauded for being a quite positive change up is the stunning drum work of Rämänen, which runs the gamut from slow tempos, fast, jam-oriented tempos, as well as extended periods of a jazzy sort of improv approach delivered underneath the crazy guitarwork of Ajomo and Vanhanen.
Fortunately, although it sees a considerable change of pace in sound, Keräily is far from being a "Dark Buddha Rising featuring Oranssi Pazuzu" type of album. The synthesis of the two bands is still there, and one can still definitely pick out the Oranssi influence coming from Toni and Juho here, but it simply appears to be more subtle, and not as easy to blatantly pick out as it was previously on Erkale. Gone are the extended, trippy interludes from the debut that conjure thoughts of Oranssi Pazuzu moments from albums such as Kosmonument and Muukalainen Puhuu. Instead, the trippy, jam-oriented guitar work of Juho now appears to be more of a background ingredient than something that comes out in the forefront of the Atomikylä sound, as in the middle of "Risteily." Or one might even pick out some tremolo picking more resemblant of the black metal side of Oranssi Pazuzu, lurking quietly here and there on "Katkos." The Oranssi influence is still there, but perhaps just not as obvious. One has to dig a little deeper for it this time around.
Though it might not seem as much like a natural synthesis of the parties involved as the debut was, the sophomore effort from Atomikylä is nonetheless a worthy continuation of the dark, heavy, and groovy brand of psychedelia that the members of Dark Buddha Rising and Oranssi Pazuzu have consistently proven themselves as being dedicated to for almost ten years. These are quite obviously musicians who are quite comfortable working with each other, and it's also obvious from listening to Keräily that they have no problem mixing things up a bit with whose musical approach takes precedence. I may have my preference of what I like out of these guys collaborating (Erkale), but I can't deny that Keräily proves that whether it's an Oranssi sound dominating the composition, a Dark Buddha Rising one doing so, or a lovely balance of the two, the efforts are going to yield some pretty powerful results regardless.
Begin the brain melting process.
Rating breakdown
Performance: | 8 |
Songwriting: | 8 |
Originality: | 9 |
Production: | 10 |
Written by Auntie Sahar | 26.04.2016
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