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There are currently 1 Reviews of this Demo.
Average Rating: 5 |
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Band Name: uneXpect
Demo Title: Utopia Band Members: Syriak (Goblinoid dialect and strings oddities), Zircon (Four strings anchor), Lunorin (Alchemist Earthbeat), Merzenya (Sounds of Cosmos), le bateleur (Violin and jests), Artagoth (Troll warsongs and mystical strings), Elda (Fairysong). Location:Quebec, Canada |
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Musashi's Review:
If you have read my reviews, you know that I hate Canada. I feel that Canada has let us all down. Canada was supposed to be this continent's answer to Sweden: a cold, northern land where metal flourishes and buxom blondes run wild. Alas, we are bordered to the north by a bunch of drunk, French-tongued, toothless hockey players. I'm so bitter.Despite my disappointment and prejudice, I occasionally hear things from Canada that I like. The package from uneXpect had all the trappings of something that I would hate. First, it was from Canada. I would again be called upon, in the name of patriotism, to bash the hell out of this CD. Second, the bio is a bunch of ridiculous gibberish. Example:
"The unorthodox imagery and visual aesthetics are for uneXpect elements much more than just important since they are directly interlaced with the ambiances and feelings emanated by the music. Adventurers of the mind, the members inspire themselves, amongst other things, with science fiction, video games, fantastic literature, surrealism, fairies, role playing and other transcendents. They even push their efforts by sometimes singing in backward French (siaknarf)."
They even admit that they are a bunch of role playing fairies! Finally, I knew I would hate this by the fact that there are seven people in the band with ridiculous names and job descriptions. What a clusterfuck! How could this even possibly be any good? Damned if I wasn't wrong.
Utopia, although not technically a demo, is one of the most impressive independent releases I've heard in a while. Utopia is a full-length effort and is totally complete in terms of the music and the artwork. I was immediately impressed by the quality of the CD booklet that contained all the lyrics and elaborately posed photos of the band members.
The music is extremely gothic and has all the theatrical elements you would expect from looking at the band. There are quiet interludes with violin and classical guitar. There are lush keyboard pads and piano parts. There are extreme metal parts with double bass drums and screaming guitars and screeching vocals. Quite "unexpectedly", uneXpect make all these parts come together in a very cohesive and believable musical collage.
Make no mistake, I am neither a fan of this dungeons and dragons stuff, nor do I care for all the "operatic" singing and keyboards in my metal. Perhaps to the more seasoned listener of this music, uneXpect might not be an exceptional band. However, I found myself drawn into the music and very entertained by the myriad changes in texture. Where other bands with seven members might indulge in a cacophonous wank session, uneXpect actually orchestrate their music to let it breathe and allow each instrument to come through at different times. It's for that reason that I'm able to listen to this album without getting bored. Furthermore, it is not overrun with the excessive keyboards and bad singing that I usually associate with this type of music. This may not be the pinnacle of this type of metal, but I find it extremely accessible and view it as an entry level CD for me to start appreciating the goth/black metal genre.
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