anyone see the conifer review on digital metal?[views:2081][posts:4]___________________________________ [Jan 22,2005 1:05pm - dreadkill ""] not sure if this has been posted already, since i haven't been to this site much in the last few weeks, but i just went to digital metal and they gave conifer a good review. i apologize if this has already been talked about, but at least it gives more exposure to the review. Conifer (Not Common) One of the most impressive debuts of 2004, Conifer’s four song full-length is a feast for the ears of sludge gluttons everywhere. Sharing a common affinity with contemporaries such as Rwake and Overmars, Conifer’s songs betray a desire to create a sonic cosmos out of sheer musical density. Ever-lumbering bass along with wretchedly thick slabs of guitars, percussion stumbling and rumbling over desperate voices straining to be heard over the din; the musical abyss Conifer invokes might be black to the core, but it is no lifeless void, no empty space they create. The four pieces on display here are grim wonders of engaging dynamics, hypnotic interplay and most importantly, a creative use of sound and space which affects an alien atmosphere, oppressively strange to the point of bewildering. The first eight of the twenty-three minutes which comprise "Troy Land Mammal" are spent expanding from raw yet comforting harmonic ambient noise to a pale and creepy melody repeated like a mantra. The bassist and drummer seem to finally lose patience and begin propelling the piece into interstellar overdrive against the sweet protestations of the guitars, until they too are forced to concede the momentum, uniting the group into a brief yet frenzied pummeling groove. After a blissful reprieve, incoming layered screaming amidst a slow-motion stop-start crunch finally drives the song into complete and complex existence. The instruments of the individual musicians fuse together brilliantly, each eagerly exploring the limitless expanse of the music, each drawing from a bottomless well of inspiration yet somehow all remaining united in some strange purpose towards which they are endlessly driven, void only of inhibition and restraint. "Turning Sand Into Glass" is introduced by spare guitar taking shelter from a sonic storm until the hovel in which it resides is relentlessly crushed by the sound of thundering doom, its fragile existence taunted by the harsh whispering vocal which follows in the wake of the destruction. A funeral march staggers to it’s feet behind the narration before being cut-off at the knees by a sharp, nimble piece of distorted shuffle and then once more into that chaotic breach. Conifer’s main song-writing device seems to use unfamiliar and unpredictable sounds to create a catchy momentum that they then purport to spasm into uncontrolled rages of furious riffing layered on top of the colossal yet quick and creative back-end. It is this style of writing which keeps the listener constantly on his toes even when seemingly lost in the overall vastness of the band’s sound. The gloomy, but relaxing instrumental, "Widowmaker" leads into the "Albuquerque Reprise", the most traditional-sounding sludge song on the album which the band still manages to stretch out the edges and push at the boundaries thereof, utilizing a dueling vocal to drive the mountainous arrangement. The rhythm guitarist again opts for a staggered palm mute while the bassist just lays down layers and layers of thickness as the second guitar wails unselfconsciously over the busy and powerful drumming. Just when the band is about to reach critical mass again, the song just cuts off, devolves back into pure sound-scape and disappears. Metal fans who measure heaviness in terms of density would do themselves well to get in on the ground-floor, as Conifer’s music is rich in a diversity and inventiveness which at no time hinders their ability or will to bring down unrestrained heaviness upon the heads of their listeners. This self-titled debut is a deep and involving album which manages to never get lost in its own machinations. [John Gnesin] Posted 01/18/2005 |
| _________________________________________ [Jan 22,2005 1:10pm - BobNOMAAMRooney ""] http://www.returntothepit.com/view.php?formid=14381 U PHAILZ |
| _________________________________________ [Jan 22,2005 1:11pm - BobNOMAAMRooney ""] Awesome review though. |
| ___________________________________ [Jan 22,2005 1:12pm - dreadkill ""] i figured it was probably posted already, but i was too lazy to look around. |
| __________________________________ [Feb 20,2005 12:49am - phantos ""] thnx for caring fellas. |