Yerûšelem - The Sublime review
| Band: | Yerûšelem |
| Album: | The Sublime |
| Style: | Industrial metal |
| Release date: | February 08, 2019 |
| A review by: | RaduP |
01. The Sublime
02. Autoimmunity
03. Eternal
04. Sound Over Matter
05. Joyless
06. Triiiunity
07. Babel
08. Reverso
09. Textures Of Silence
Finally, an industrial metal album that sounds like industrial music. I just wish it didn't sound as much like Blut Aus Nord trying to write a Godflesh album.
It's no secret that Blut Aus Nord like industrial music; they've made that perfectly clear since 2003's The Work Which Transforms God basically transformed black metal into a cold machine of terror (here's an article about that). And that has been part of their music, at least on most albums, ever since; but the most striking ones were the ones in the 777 trilogy, which honestly feel like they perfected the blend of industrial and black metal, so now mastermind Vindsval has reunited with ex-member W.D. Feld to dedicate Yerû?elem to that industrial sound.
The press release obviously painted a grandiose picture in the wake of this album's announcement, giving grand expectations for it that honestly couldn't have been achieved no matter what, but at least it turned some heads in this direction. And now that we have this entire thing for ourselves to listen to, I can't really hear a lot of the influences stated in the press release, like dreamgaze or Autechre, but one of those actually hit the nail right on its head. And if you read my admittedly exaggerated intro statement, you know who that is.
The Sublime feels like another example of a great album ruined by massive expectations, so leaving aside those, how is The Sublime? Strong, pulsating, and repetitive, like all industrial music should be. More industrial than metal, but still heavy and distorted enough to be metal, it feels a lot more modern and layered than its obvious influence, but it still feels as though the songs, although short, need some place to build up to instead of droningly showcasing each layer with nothing but ambiance in mind. The ambiance is great and engaging, mind you, but it's too often that I wonder how long a particular section is going to go on for. And for minds that have proven time again that they understand how to make great industrial music, this feels odd.
This is far from a massive disappointment, though, and I don't want the general impression to be that the music is boring or not engaging, but putting The Sublime in context, it's not a debut from a promising industrial act; it's something that could have been more than just slightly being a cut above the rest.
 | Written on 18.02.2019 by Doesn't matter that much to me if you agree with me, as long as you checked the album out. |
Comments
Comments: 11
Visited by: 108 users
| Auntie Sahar Drone Empress Posts: 5989  |
Yep, you pretty much nailed my thoughts as well with this one. It's definitely a good album, and I really like the title track and Babel, but it's a bit underwhelming at points too. Seems like it was some unused BAN material that Vindsval and Feld decided was "different enough" to release under a new name more than it's a genuinely new beginning in their sound. Even the TEoAM EP was a more radical departure from "the usual Blut Aus Nord sound" than this is honestly. I was hoping for a good dose of that TEoAM sound here, more electronic and trip hop-ish, but I'm not really feeling it. No biggie, still fair 7 - 8 material in my book.
---- 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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| RaduP CertifiedHipster Staff Posts: 9027  |
Written by Auntie Sahar on 18.02.2019 at 14:20 It's still a damn good industrial metal album and imma have a hard time transforming this somewhat negative review into a positive writeup when Im innevitably gonna vote for this in the msa Like SSUS said: The Writeup Which Transforms Reviews
---- Do you think if the heart keeps on shrinking One day there will be no heart at all?
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| Lord Slothrop Posts: 411  |
Your review summed it up for me as well. I was really looking forward to this project, but my hype overshadowed the final product. I like it, but feel somewhat disappointed at the same time. I'd give it a 7.5; however that album cover is a perfect 10.
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| Desha delicious dish Posts: 817  |
Completely on point.
---- You are the hammer, I am the nail building a house in the fire on the hill
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| Unhealer Eclecticist Posts: 2311  |
Agree a 100%, it is still really enjoyable but not memorable... except for that incredible artwork.
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| Batlord666 Posts: 150 |
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| Mercurial Posts: 1175  |
Written by Batlord666 on 20.02.2019 at 00:04 Tbh I've long suspected WD Feld is actually just Vindsval. No proof other than the fact "he's" never worked on any other projects that I I've heard about.
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| Auntie Sahar Drone Empress Posts: 5989 |
Written by Mercurial on 20.02.2019 at 01:29 Cool theory, could be true. I know BAN has been directly announced as being a one man thing on certain albums (MoRT and one or two of the 777 ones I think?). The only other BAN member you can really confirm is actually another person and who plays in different bands is Thorns.... I think
---- 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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| Batlord666 Posts: 150 |
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| nikarg Staff Posts: 7345  |
Written by RaduP on 18.02.2019 at 15:34 I did it for Ghost this year, it's not impossible  I still haven't listened to this album yet but the cover art is really stunning, as many others have already said.
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| nikarg Staff Posts: 7345 |
Okay, I finally listened to it. Twice. I didn't actually listen to the whole thing the second time because I had to skip most songs. I liked the title track and Babel, like Che said, but in general the album failed to engage me. And the press release was indeed a fucking joke.
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