EP Review: Hieroglyph – Freefall

Sporting a moniker that describes the ancient Egyptian writing system, you’d expect this Leeds sextet to have some pretty far-out ideas on where they believe modern metal should be headed right now. Judging from the mashed-up sound that emerges from their Freefall EP that assessment rings true.

The spine of the music is one hefty wedge of hard-hitting technical groove metal, much in the manic, jam-packed style of Meshuggah or Periphery. However, woven around this are other elements such as electronic segues and heady melodic touches. They aren’t afraid to break flow to achieve the aim of cramming their two very different vocalists in. Mark Howes’ deathly roars and scowls most certainly get the blood boiling, whilst Valentina Reptile’s Within Temptation-esque, crystalline singing speaks to the heart.

There’s a current trend for dual vocal bands and the main problem most have is in marrying the twin styles. Certainly, these two seem poles apart. Neither the busy song construction or the harsh production help matters, yet one cannot escape the fact that throughout tracks like “In The Air” and, in particular, “Dubious Disc”, the one pulls whilst the other pushes. Behind the band’s lightning groove, this boy-girl combo simply tear the listener asunder.

Happily, the gritty title-track and the blacker “Tenebris”, both feature a slower, spacious, infinitely more focussed design. The former track leaps to the fore as the standout. It’s strongly reminiscent of the kind of dark, hectic lunacy that Luis Dubuc’s Of Legends pumped out and certainly proves that Hieroglyph aren’t short of talent. As a live act, Hieroglyph have the potential to thrill, but they might need to show a little less muscle and a little more of their dark side when hitting the studio.

Have a listen here:  https://www.facebook.com/hieroglyphband

Also online @ Ave Noctum = http://www.avenoctum.com/2014/10/hieroglyph-freefall-sr/

Interview: Of Legends

When Of Legends’ debut album, ‘Stranded’, winged its way into the MTUK office earlier this year all hell broke lost. Not only was the music a brutal eye-opener, not only was it yet another tentative baby-step into a newly-forming genre, but when we realised the chap at the helm was, up to now, known for being an electro-pop peddler it was like slipping into an alternate reality. Having just laid waste to half of North America on their Spring tour, John Skibeat grabbed a moment to fire a few questions at the man himself, vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Luis Dubuc.

Most will know you, Luis, as the man behind The Secret Handshake. What convinced you to make the leap from electronica into metal?
Well, it wasn’t that hard to be honest and really it was just exciting to be doing something so freeing as compared to pop music.

Have you always been a fan of heavy music in general?
Yes, ever since I was a young boy. That’s not something most people know about me so I guess it can throw most of my fans off, especially my critics.

The Secret Handshake was a solo project. At what point did you realise you might need some help from others to fully realise the band Of Legends?
Well, I think it was clear I needed to have that real element, so Travis [Orbin, drums] was an obvious choice based on his talent and character. It has been a great fit.

The band is comprised of yourself and members of Drop Dead Gorgeous and Sky Eats Airplane. How did the collaborations come about?
Well, at the time when I was ready to start touring with Of Legends, the guys’ other bands were sort of ending per se and so it was a perfect fit.

Who took on songwriting duties?
On the album, I wrote everything and sent the tracks to Travis who really took ownership of the drums and tracked them. I played everything else on the album.

I’m thinking specifically of the lyrics that refer to “the humans” when I ask whether you’re a fan of Devin Townsend’s body of work?
Ha! The album is a concept album about the movie Event Horizon, so that’s why those references are made.

What would you say your influences are for writing the songs that you have?
Well, to be honest I’m a huge fan of all genres of music, but overall I really love Meshuggah, In Flames and Soilwork as far as metal goes.

The atmosphere generated by the pile-driving polyrhythms are somewhat reminiscent of bands like Meshuggah, Dillinger Escape Plan and Strapping Young Lad. How much input did Travis Orbin have with that side of things?
Well, like I said earlier, I had written the drums and he took them and “orbinated” them and really made them shine and become unbelievable. He has an amazing talent.

Your vocal style is a real throat-scraper! How did you find it trying to reproduce that kind of raw power and what methods do you use to keep it intact?
I think that sound is just my newness to the genre and overall lack of knowledge of how to scream properly. I’m glad people like it.

You’ve now got Ben Weinman (Dillinger Escape Plan) and Tim Smith (Atreyu / HORSEtheband) co-managing the band. How did they register their interest?
Well, I had been friends with them for a few years and when I showed them the album it was clear that I was serious about the project and so they decided to get involved.

What did it feel like to get that kind of backing so quickly?
Well, it was a bit of pressure but it was fun to live up to it - especially live.

Considering you performed virtually everything on the album, can you describe how difficult you found the process?
It was a bit tricky to be honest as I had done all the demos at home with virtually no pressure. The whole album was done in about 6 days so it was go, go, go!

Now you’ve covered North America, can we expect to see you taking the live shows to other countries in the future?
Hopefully soon, just taking it one step at a time right at this moment.

Is this a project that you think can run and run and, if so, have you already started thinking about what you want to do for the next album?
Yes, we have already begun writing the next album as a collective, so it’s not just me at the helm anymore. Very excited to see how it turns out.

Perhaps (and it’s only a thought) with so many members of Sky Eats Airplane on board, we might expect to see you developing a more melodic sound?
Definitely not melodic in a singing sense. I think personally I really prefer to have metal with just screaming, though I do think the music will become more technical.

Also online @ MTUK = http://www.metalteamuk.net/interviews11/interview-ofleg.htm

Album review = http://johnskibeat.blogspot.com/2011/02/album-review-of-legends-stranded.html

Album Review: Of Legends - Stranded

Of Legends mix the rampant technical tomfoolery of Strapping Young Lad with the mathematical, bass-heavy polyrhythms of Meshuggah and throw it deep into the kind of roiling 'core tempest that bands like Oceano or Whitechapel get swept up in. They are the side-project of Luis Dubuc. Yes, that's Luis Dubuc, the electro-pop wizard, founder of one-man band The Secret Handshake (which he announced as defunct towards the end of last year). How he jumped from one absolute pole to the other in one vast leap is astounding. Not just because of the audacity of such a move, but that he's managed to produce something as utterly convincing as this. He's pulled in a little help from none-other than Travis Orbin (Periphery, Sky Eats Airplane) on drums but the rest of the parts are, inevitably, performed by his good self.

Not surprisingly the interest of Ben Weinman (Dillinger Escape Plan's guitarist) and Tim Smith (Atreyu, HORSE the band and Norma Jean's manager) was piqued and they are now co-managing the band which, according to the cover bumph, appears to have become a quintet with Elliot Coleman now on bass and Zack Ordway and Jacob Belcher coming in on guitar. However many they are, they have clearly enough clout behind them now to make a lasting impression.

'Stranded', their debut album, will feature twelve tracks when it finally drops in March (two more than this promo release has) and all the signs point to it being a monster. It is, essentially, an epic display of Orbin's drumming prowess and, when that ability is fed into this colossal series of body slams it leaves you feeling utterly breathless. Highlights are the scraping guitar licks and elongated open, whammied chords that litter 'Cannibal King', the donkey kick battering that the drums of 'Death Eyes' give you, and the phenomenal two-minute electro machine-gun blitzed husk that the venomous 'Consecro' snake resides in.

The vocal delivery, being nothing more than a piercing, mono-pitched lughole scraper, does tend to make one track seep into another but, thankfully, the lyrics behind the screaming banshee do a good job of identifying each track for you. Off-the-wall lines like "Stay above the water and try not to sink" (from 'Consecro') are telling, but it's the full-'Ziltoid' lunacy of "It's just the humans, they do tend to scatter" (from 'Nothing Matters') and, in particular, "OH MY GOD, we've got to keep on fighting to save the humans" (from 'Save The Humans') that shows off the extent of Dubuc's desire to emulate Devin Townsend. The day he starts sporting a skullet is the day we'll know for sure just how fanboy he is.

You simply have to ignore the writing and production inaccuracies. Ignore the obnoxious click on the drum kick-pedal (particularly noticeable on 'False God's bare double-kicked intro), ignore the lifeless smack of the snare, ignore the fact that the electronic sample fills and effects keep the album from feeling truly organic. Especially ignore the final abruptly-cut caterwauling reverb effect on 'The Last Legend' (the full-length album should leave you with a more suitable lasting impression). You have to ignore all these things because you just must admire what Dubuc has achieved here in such a short space of time and marvel at what this band could potentially become. If this man can keep his wandering mind on this one project for awhile we might see Of Legends become legends themselves.

Also online @ MTUK = http://www.metalteamuk.net/jan11reviews/cdreviews-ol.htm