Siberian Hell Sounds/Convulsing/Art As Catharsis/2017 Split Album Review

  This  is  a  review  of  a  split  album  between  Australia's  Siberian  Hell  Sounds  and  Convulsing  which  was  released  by  Art  As  Catharsis  and  we  will  start  off  the  review  with  Siberian  Hell  Sounds  a  band  that  plays  a  raw  mixture  of  black  metal,  crust  and  grindcore.

  Their  side  of  the  split  starts  out  with  some  guitar  amp  drones  before  adding  in  some  heavy,  melodic  and  dissonant  riffing  and  after  awhile  angry  black  metal  screams  start  to  make  their  presence  known  which  also  leads  up  to  a  very  fast  and  raw  musical  direction  which  also  uses  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking.

  Blast  beats  can  also b e  heard  in  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  which  is  also  20  minutes  in  length  while  the  music  also  mixes  in  elements  of  post  hardcore,  grind  and  crust  while  the  track  also  brings  in a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts,  clean  playing  and  growls  are  also  used  briefly  as  well  as  some  spoken  word  parts  and  when  guitar  leads  are utilized  they  are  done  in a   very  dark  yet  melodic  fashion.

  On  this  recording  Siberian  Hell  Sounds  plays  a  style  of  black  metal  that  is  very  raw  and  dissonant  while  the  crust,  grind  and  post  hardcore  elements  gives  the  music  more originality,  the  production  sounds  very  dark and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  cover  violence,  anger  and  machinery  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  track  from  Siberian  Hell  Sounds  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  raw  black  metal,  crust,  grind  and  post  hardcore,  you  should  check  out  their  side  of  the  track.

  Next  up  is  Convulsing  a  solo  project  that  plays  a  raw  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal.

  His  side  of  the  split  starts  out  with  some  atmospheric  soundscapes  before  going  into  a  very  fast  and  raw  musical  musical  direction which  also  uses  a  great  amount  picking  and  blast  beats  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  bestial  death  metal  growls  along  with  the  music  being  mostly  rooted  in  black  metal

  The  track  is  over  20  minutes  in  length  while  the  song  also b rings  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  some  black  metal  screams  also  being  utilized  at  times  and  after  awhile  avant  garde  and  experimental  elements  are  also  added  into  the  song  as  well  as  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing,  whispered  vocals  can  also  be  heard  briefly.

  Convulsing  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  raw  black  metal  and  death  metal  and  takes  them  into  an  experimental  direction  to  create  something  different,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  cover  blankness  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Convulsing  are  a  very  great  sounding  raw  and  experimental  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  solo  project.

  In  conclusion  I  feel  this  is  a  very  great  sounding  split  and  would  recommend  it  to  all  fans  of  the  more  modern  black  metal  style.  8  out  of  10.

https:// artascatharsis.bandcamp.com/ album/split



  

Siberian Hell Sounds Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

We're a 3-piece from Brisbane, Australia, the sunniest, least stereotypical black metal location ever besides possibly Hawaii. We've been on-off as a band since early 2013 and have finally settled into a more solid lineup and are finally starting to get shit done.

2.How would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recordings?

The most oppressive, discordant racket we could muster. Like sleep paralysis in musical form. We aim to make you feel bad. 

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

All our lyrics are quite abstract, older material was generally inspired by Dante's Inferno and Milton's Paradise Lost. Lyrics for Svengali relate to the process whereby an external party can begin to manipulate a person. The Svengali in question is open to interpretation based on the listener's own beliefs but for me it represents media, religion and their affiliates.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Siberian Hell Sounds'?

It's taken from a radio hoax from the 80's. Basically someone convinced a Christian radio station that they had a recording of the sounds of Hell (supplied by a family member who had been part of a drilling team in Siberia) and the station bought it hook-line-and-sinker. Google 'Well to Hell hoax'.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

We recently had the privilege of touring Australia with the Danish band Hexis, quite possibly the most intense band you'll ever have the pleasure of seeing live. I don't know how to describe our stage performance besides 'dark'. I never pay attention to what anyone else is doing onstage.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

I hope so. Nothing locked in as yet but plenty in the works.

7.So far you have been a part of a couple of splits, can you tell us a little it more about the bands you have shared these recordings with?

Our first split was with a now defunct d-beat/crust band called NONE. The studio we recorded at had an EGC on hand, damn the guitars sound sick on that recording. Our second split was with an also now defunct hardcore band named Travels. I've been friends with all those guys since forever and although they're a completely different style to us we decided to try something a little different. Cool thing to note about this is that we play in very different tunings and wrote the songs independent of each other and they both came out in the same key so we decided to make it one long song. Played it live as such one time and it was fucking awesome.

8.The new album was released on 'Art Of Catharis Records', can you tell us a little bit more about this label?

The most enthusiastic, eclectic, awesome label in Australia. Lachlan loves music and seems to do everything he can to help the bands on his label and I'm very happy that he chooses to associate himself with us.

9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal and grindcore?

We're still very much in the dank basement of the underground but I've been sending a lot of packages lately to a lot of new places so that seems indicative that it's all going in the right direction. Thank you to anyone reading this who has bought shit off us.

10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

Faster, darker, more intense. I don't know yet how we'll achieve this but I'm looking forward to it already.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Bands that I feel directly inspired Svengali; Kriegsmaschine, Cursed, Darkthrone, Plebeian Grandstand, Hexis, Medico Peste, Amenra.

12.What are some of your non musical interests?

Food, dogs, nature, drugs, talking shit.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

It is better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven

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Siberian Hell Sounds/Svengali/Art As Catharsis Records/2016 EP Review

  Siberian  Hell  Sounds  are  a  band  from  Australia  that  plays  a  very  raw  form  of  blackened  crust/grind  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  ep  :Svengali"  which  was  released  by  Art As  Catharsis  Records.

  Spoken  word  samples  and  amp  sounds  start  off  the  ep  before  going  into  more  of  a  dark  yet  melodic  direction and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  tremolo  picking  can  be  heard  which  also  gives the  music  more  of a  raw  feeling  along  with  some  high  pitched  black  metal screams.

  Crust  and  hardcore  style  shouting  is  also  used  on  a  regular  basis  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  some  d  beat  elements  and  the  faster  sections  of  the  tracks  also  brings  in  the  raw  energy  of  grindcore  and  spoken  words  are  also  used  on  other songs  as  well  as  well  as  a  small  amount  of  death  metal  growls  and  the  music  also  adds in  touches  of  noise  and  power  violence.

  Siberian  Hell  Sounds  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  raw  black  metal, crust,  grind  and  post  hardcore  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  dark,  raw  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  are  a  concept  album  based  upon  the  sacrifice  of  one's  own  body  to  the  mind  of  the  other.

  In  my  opinion  Siberian  Hell  Sounds  are  a  very  great  sounding  blackened  crust/grind  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED TRACKS  INCLUDE  'Seed"  and  "Svengali".  8  out  of  10.

https://siberianhellsounds.ban dcamp.com/album/svengali