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Reviews
Mysticum: In the streams of inferno
31/10/07 || Global Domination
This review was written by ex-staffer/cocksmoker Desolator.
MySpace attracts a lot of fuckwits, but I love how I find a lot of good black metal bands there. Well, most black metal bands I found on MySpace are fucken shit. I mean, even shit would look down at them, point and laugh. Such bands attract fuckwits of their own too. But Mysticum is not one of these bands. Despite the production, which you could say is poor, this is some bizarre industrial black metal that rocks my jocks.
The guitars sound much like white noise, but somehow it appeals to me. Of course, I imagine a lot of people would think it sounds like shit, and I understand. White noise isn’t for everyone. I’m probably one of the few who can enjoy this without taking in a good dose of crack beforehand. I’m also insane enough to listen to this stuff on a regular basis and enjoy the fuck out of it. Like I said, I’ve got a hard on for weird and obscure music. It’s the mistress (or prostitute, if you like) for that fucked up mound that sits between my ears.
Since this is industrial black metal, there are a lot of cool-as-fuck sound effects and keyboardisms. The programmed drums certainly add something too, often giving the impression of white noise techno. The vocals are done by Aborym’s vocalist Prime Evil in his old school era. Just like the music, they are “lightly present” but very vicious. It’s hard to find the bass, but seek and you shall find, because it is there. It’s just as thin as the guitars. Occasionally, it’s quite a thumper, like a tyre smacking you in the nose, particularly on “Wintermass”.
The production of the guitars is even more anorexic than Darkthrone’s “Transylvanian Hunger” and could have earned the generic kvlt black metal tag for Mysticum. In fact, if it wasn’t for the industrial elements, this album would be enough to give Fenriz blue balls. Or he might run away screaming. But as I said, I actually do like the white noise guitars since they’re backed up with so much interesting shit. There are a lot of weird elements put together, and they just work for me.
What can I say about the feeling and mood? This album is relatively light-weight and has no crushing effect. Instead it’s a sinister piece of work. Very very dark and mystical. In fact, I can get an even greater sense of brooding feeling (in a good way) when listening to this bad little boy at night. There are also some amusing parts, including some angry dude saying “you know what you did, you cunting daughter!” Then a girl’s screams follow this dialog, along with Prime Evil’s insane screams and dramatic hyper-speed tunes.
I can’t see many people getting into this shit in a hurry, but if you’re into weird abstract industrial metal, then get this album into your head and give it a spin. They’ve even got this entire album on their site, available for download. If you wish for this band to utilise better production techniques, then I have good news. I checked out their newer stuff on “Lost Masters Of The Universe”, and for some songs the production is solid. So check out “Black Magic Mushrooms” and “Eriaminell” if you want the solid, crushing side of Mysticum.
I guess that by the sound of this review, I’ve praised this band while advising people to approach it with caution, right? Yeah I do confusing things like that. Why would I state reasons for people not to like this band while giving it a good score do you ask? Because I’m insane and unpredictable. But the important thing is that I love this album for what it is. Weird as fuck and unlike anything I’ve heard.
Also, in before anyone calls this band Misty Cum.
8 acres of white noise out of 10.
- Information
- Released: 1996
- Label: Full Moon Productions
- Website: www.mysticum.com
- Band
- Robin “Mean” Malmberg: bass and programming
- Cerastes (Benny): guitars and vocals
- Prime Evil: guitars and vocals
- Tracklist
- 01. Industries Of Inferno
- 02. The Rest
- 03. Let The Kingdom Come
- 04. Wintermass
- 05. Crypt Of Fear
- 06. Where The Raven Flies
- 07. In Your Grave
- 08. In The Last Of The Ruins We Search For A New Planet