Keeper - MMXIV review
| Band: | Keeper |
| Album: | MMXIV |
| Style: | Doom metal, Sludge metal |
| Release date: | July 05, 2014 |
| Guest review by: | Alex F |
01. Hours Pt 1
02. As It Needs To Be...
03. Perception/Prescription
04. Admittance
05. All It Needs To Be... Pt. 2&3
Painting landscapes of jagged formations covered in a haze, making you certain of your demise, Keeper astound and impress in this, their first demo, MMXIV. You could be forgiven for believing that this is the scenery from which they come, although they actually hail from the sunny beaches of California. Their particular brand of doom is so densely layered in sludge, black, with even some punk or hardcore elements peeking through, that the atmosphere manifested is one of a particular ominous quality.
It is quite easy to forget while listening to MMXIV that it is actually the band's first demo. The quality of production and of songwriting rivals professionals in the genre that have been making music for years. The instrumentation will envelop you, playing a mournful form of funeral doom, and then in an instant the speed picks up and bludgeons you with incredible force. Moments within the album contain melody so haunting it could send shivers through your body, much like the closing few minutes of "As It Needs To Be? Pt 2 & 3". Despite this, Keeper match the sheer heaviness of even the most brutal death metal bands, incorporating sludge-like riffing and structures in the upbeat portions of the demo.
The vocals are of immense quality, shredding your speakers apart as they burst through the hazy layers of guitar, drums, and deep brooding bass. A layer of distortion seems to resonate under the vocalists shrieks, swirling through it, creating a truly dense and horrifying layer of pure misanthropy. As his screams tear at your flesh, ripping it from your bones, you become one with the pain created in each aching note. Keeper beat the happiness from your life, putting in its' place layer upon dreadful layer of misery.
Keeper have risen through the mediocrity of many DIY bands, and proven that their tales of torture and suffering must be shared. Realizing again that this is just a demo, I feel nothing but excitement for this band's future.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 9 |
| Songwriting: | 8 |
| Originality: | 7 |
| Production: | 9 |
Written by Alex F | 03.12.2014
Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
Comments
Comments: 17
Visited by: 37 users
| !J.O.O.E.! Account deleted |
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| Alex F Posts: 3519  |
Written by [user id=4365] on 04.12.2014 at 00:38 Wait... what punctuation corrections? I thought I had fixed them.
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| !J.O.O.E.! Account deleted |
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| Alex F Posts: 3519 |
Written by [user id=4365] on 04.12.2014 at 00:47 I am a failure  Sorry, thought I had fixed them.
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| Ilham Giant robot Posts: 5161  |
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| !J.O.O.E.! Account deleted |
!J.O.O.E.!
Account deleted Written by Alex F on 04.12.2014 at 00:49 Lel, you should read through my reviews and see the masses of structural and grammatical errors there are.
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| Alex F Posts: 3519 |
Written by [user id=4365] on 04.12.2014 at 00:51 OK! I'll find them all and endlessly berate you for them
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| Auntie Sahar Drone Empress Posts: 5989  |
That's some pretty damn good work for popping your reviewing cherry man, or at least much better than my first few were  This sounds like it's pretty impressive, and the fact that you describe it with such praise when it's still only a demo makes me want to check it out even more. Maybe I'm simplifying it, but this sounds something like Tyranny + Hexis from the way you paint it out, which definitely makes my mouth water. You'll be getting my opinion on it soon.
---- I am the Magician and the Exorcist. I am the axle of the wheel, and the cube in the circle. “Come unto me” is a foolish word: for it is I that go. ~ II. VII
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| Alex F Posts: 3519 |
Written by Auntie Sahar on 04.12.2014 at 01:04 I look forward to your thoughts! It's really got a lot of stylistic elements thrown in it, but I can definitely see the "Tyranny + Hexis" comparison. Also thanks! Hopefully I'll become a review-whore from here on out 
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| mz Posts: 4824  |
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| Auntie Sahar Drone Empress Posts: 5989 |
Ok, checking it now and this is pretty sick. I think the biggest selling point for me is that the vocals are reminding me a lot of Alan Dubin from Khanate, in the sense that they're harsh, but you can still fairly often make out what's being said without needing lyrics right in front of you. That's a rare delivery to come by, and I like it a lot. Musically it strikes a really good balance between its elements, thundering, almost drony doom one second, some BM style riffing the next, and I can hear that punk texture you mentioned subtly hear and there too. Great find man.
---- I am the Magician and the Exorcist. I am the axle of the wheel, and the cube in the circle. “Come unto me” is a foolish word: for it is I that go. ~ II. VII
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| Ilham Giant robot Posts: 5161 |
Yeah not contradicting you on the styles you heard, but I expected more of those touches. This remains principally blackened doom in my opinion. Great demo indeed, just realised I forgot to cast a vote.
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| Alex F Posts: 3519 |
Written by Ilham on 04.12.2014 at 15:52 I think I may have overstated them, so I am going to work on genre classification in future reviews. Those punk/hardcore/crust elements really only peak through at specific moments, and mostly just influence minor stylistic choices.
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| Ilham Giant robot Posts: 5161 |
Written by Alex F on 04.12.2014 at 15:55 Nah don't, I think it's important to mention them even if they're minor, gives you a magnified feel of the album not a truncated simple two word statement. I bitched too fast, I should have nuanced my post. That's what makes it interesting, when the little outside influences suddenly pop out and you get the "oh that's what he was talking about" thing and you virtually fist-bump with the reviewer.
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| Alex F Posts: 3519 |
Written by Ilham on 04.12.2014 at 16:00 Haha ok I see where you're coming from now. Thanks for the reflection though! It's my first review so I'm just trying to get all of the feedback possible.
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| Ilham Giant robot Posts: 5161 |
Written by Alex F on 04.12.2014 at 16:05 Don't take my words as gospel though. I don't have more than 40 reviews in my suitcase.
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