What up, guys! I'm Kurt Helborg, lead singer and acting manager of up-and-coming DM act Dissection, and i'm gonna give it to you straight to the face. Dissection aren't a pretty-boy emo poser band, nor are we softcore melodic metal for screaming girls. We are hard, heavy, unforgiving and freakin' brutal- in short, we're not a commercial giant playing what the 'public' wants to hear. Dissection are about as savage and primal as it gets, and we're gonna stay that way. The reason i'm tellin' you this is because, up until now, we've mainly been a seriously underground band- even when compared to our peers (Saints Holocaust springs to mind)- and we want to give you 100% heavy metal 100% of the time, and that means we've gotta get out and get to know you guys. Our new album, 'My World of Ruins' is out now, soon to be followed up, and although it's not gonna break any records, we're still doing this for the fans- not for the freakin' media. Give it a listen, get in the van, get in the pit. Enough said. Horns up!
The Band: - Kurt Helborg: Lead Vocalist
- Karl Franz: Lead Guitarist
- Ludwig Schwarzhelm: Bass Guitarist and Backing Vocalist
- Boris Urzus: Rhythm Guitarist
- Kollen Whyste: Drummer and Backing Vocalist
The Albums: - The Dawn of Inhumanity (Black Label Records)
- In This River of Tears (Black Label Records)
- My World of Ruins (Black Label Records)
My World of Ruins: Reviewed by Gary Hanneman, Metallistorm Magazine
Review conducted 28 January 2011
Another year, another enterprising DM band- as the underground saying goes. I'm not stating, not for a minute, that Dissection- an Oxfordshire based German death metal band- are just generic run-of-the-mill material. Far from it, despite the obvious fact that they're far from perfect. When I received a demo copy of this album, I must admit that I had no high hopes for it. 'In This River of Tears', the bands previous studio effort, was lacklustre and flat in places, whilst 'The Dawn of Inhumanity', their debut, was frankly disastrous- I didn't expect a massive buck in the trend of template blastbeats and uninspired grunts. What I was given- although not trumping all negative hype I haboured- was markably unlike anything the germans had released before. It felt polished in places, with little sparks of genius thrown around here and there; a intricate spiralling riff in one place, a solo of epic proportions in another. It felt as if Dissection really were beginning to come out of their collective shells. Here's a quick track by track, just to get my points across:
1: 'My World of Ruins'- 4:55. A sinister gothic intro spirals from the speakers as the first track- the title track- hits the ears: before breaking out into a simply overwhelmingly complex riff fraught with beatdowns, deep crunching tones and savage bite. You can feel the open strength this track carries even before it opens out into its topical chorus, despite the weak-kneed soloing efforts and failing attempts at melody. A stunning start.
2: 'Forget You'- 3:22. An interesting twist in the tale is embodied in this track, as the band give their best shot at black metal balladry- which sadly doesn't always work. The riff and chorus chugging may be suitably barbarous- just what the fans expect- but the awkward clean picking and off-key vocals from Kurt make for a less than inspired song.
3: 'Dust'- 3:46. More of a second part to 'Forget You' rather than a track in itself, and much less impressive for it. Again the beautifully skull-crushing guitar work is overlaid with painful histronics and irritating warbles; however, the solo on this track is perhaps the best the band have written. Well worth a listen just to hear Karl Franz's phenomenal six-string pyrotechnics at the 2:50 mark.
4: 'Decaying Nation'- 5:11. This is the Dissection I know best! Starting with a no-nonsense lead beatdown and climbing into sheer impossible brutality in a matter of seconds, the song twists and turns relentlessly, seamlessly switching from riff to riff without pause. It even manages to carry it's aural assualt throughout an extended track length, a mark of the band breaking newer ground. A highlight of the album.
5: 'In Restraint Is Faliure'- 2:10. A short, violent instrumental, thrown in to add light and shade to an otherwise darker recording. Regardless of the lack of vocals and of the miniscule time in which it is executed, it proves a nice distraction from the near-endless blastbeats the group otherwise proffer. One destined never to be played live, but skillfully written nonetheless.
6: 'A Better Kind of Mercy'- 3:58. The best song on the album. Enough said- well, almost enough. A grinding refrain builds from an otherwise gothically draped introduction, culminating in an explosion of almost unrepressed aggression. The riff is so technical it may as well be a thrash one, and the bridges crunch with all the monstrous rage of a dying caged leopard. Quite an achievement indeed, but certainly not for a casual listener.
7: 'Ashes to Ashes'- 7:47. An interesting choice, this one. I chose to believe that it was primarily included for it's rather deep lyrical content than it's slightly oddball time signature. It deals with the concept of resurrection, the passage between one death to the next; it is not something a standard DM act would usually commit to, given that it is an epic and is progressive in places. Still a well-rounded effort in the long run, and after a detailed listen, an excellent example of lyrical genius.
8: 'Heart of the Wasteland'- 3:34. And we're back to the brutal basics with this carnageous number, which holds no semblance of the intellectual mastery of its predescessor. This is purist death, with a pounding lead sound, a spidery but forcible bass and some of the finest drumming exhibited yet by Mr. Kollen. It's tracks like these that keep Dissection underground, but also make the band the hidden icons they are. Nice and traditional.
9: 'Sunlights Death'- 2:59. Weak in nearly all places. The limp-wristed fretwork displays no real intent or effort, the drums are so slow they could keep time for an advancing tortoise and the lyrics are stereotypical and ill thought out. The only positive thing about this turgid piece of inept banality is that it is very short- you don't have to suffer it for quite so long. Sadly dissapointing.
10: 'Like the Last Light'- 4:12. A nice, simple closure to a mixed recording. It does all Dissection promise, just if you were wondering, with the usual deeply primal riffing structure and the frenzied blastbeats, all sewn up by some terrifying growls from Kurt. Not a stadium filler, but a strong track in it's own right- just don't expect to hear this one live.
Total Score= 7.5/10. A polished effort, but still needs work. Keep on trying, and horns up!
The Current Tour- 'Why Won't You Scream?- UK'
Dates: - 31st January: Wolverhampton Civic Hall (tickets available)
- 1st February: Brixton Academy (sold out!)
- 2nd February: Ashton Gate Stadium (sold out!)
- 3rd February: The O2 Academy (tickets available)
- 5th February: The O2 Docklands (sold out!)
OOC: This is my first ever post here, so it's not gonna be great. Just bear that in mind, ok guys? Thanks. :) (and can someone tell me how to post pictures here? I want to put up the album cover!).
