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France’s Merrimack aren’t that old. They formed in the mid-’90s and saw sporadic action until three albums in the ’00s. But on Grey Rigorism [Moribund/Osmose, 2009], they’ve matured. In black metal, “maturation” is hazardous. It usually involves slicker production and signing to bigger labels. Part of black metal’s appeal was its youth — kids who didn’t know whether to praise Satan or Odin; who had crappy equipment and crappier musicianship; and whose hormones found expression in chaos. Now instead of Frankensteined hybrids of punk and metal, we have clones.
Until now, these included Merrimack. But the band has learned that relentlessness does not equal impact. Grey Rigorism has actual songs with actual riffs, space, and variation. Especially prominent is the “dissonant jangles + midpaced marches” formula of compatriots Deathspell Omega, Glorior Belli, and Obscurus Advocam. Dissonant jangles juxtapose notes that technically shouldn’t be juxtaposed, then let them thrum in ringing conflict. Midpaced marches make that conflict regular. In a world of Western tonal music, this approach is unsettling. Instead of resolving tension, it revels in it. It hammers home “wrong” so much, it becomes the new right.
But compositional and tonal dynamics don’t necessarily yield textural dynamics. Tore Stjerna’s production is clean and punchy, yet swathed in sheets of sound. Grey Rigorism is like a stainless steel blanket. It’s forbidding; only after several weeks could I get into it. Now that I’m “into” it, I’m not particularly inclined to get “out of” it. It’s cold, calculating, and addictive. Its passion is verbal, not musical. The lyrics address Satan with Hebrew terminology: “Adonai, Hear this soul that sings your glory. These knees are made for kneeling and that is just what they do, so grant Thy favors to this son of Thine.” (“These knees are made for kneeling”??? What happened to “No gods, no masters”?) It’s strange to hear black metal so grown up. Given its feral origins, it’s almost unrecognizable now.
Buy:
Amazon
Relapse
The End
Moribund
Merrimack tour the US in Nov/Dec alongside Marduk. See dates here.
I'm not especially familiar with the other bands you listed, but I'm getting a serious Enslaved vibe from Merrimack.
Omniabsence somewhat runs the gamut of heavier music styles, but does so pretty seamlessly. Nice find!
This band kicks Enslaved's ass all over the place, especially given how soft Enslaved have gotten.
Basically anything that's French and BM is going to be good.
"Adonai" is not Satan, it is hebrew for "my master", and it is used to express the tetragrammaton ("Yahwheh") which is techincally unpronounceable. So rather than addressing Satan (who doesn't really exist in hebrew lore), they are addressing God.
Cheshire – Given Merrimack's public anti-Christian stance, that's unlikely. Lyrically, most of this album is a supplication towards Satan (directly called "the Devil" at one point). The use of Hebrew terminology here comports with similar language used by other orthodox black metal bands. They subvert Christianity by using its language, only with Satan as the deity.
I like dissonance, but often it is used at high speed which doesn't allow the full effect to seep in. This has some nice slow moments that remind me of some of Godflesh's use of dissonance, although without the harmonics.
I've been liking the slower BM you've been showcasing recently. While I may have praised the Chuck Berry influence on Glorior Belli recently, I'm not sure I approve of the Nancy Sinatra influence…
@ invisibleoranges:
My guess then is that the band is dismissing the entire judeo-christian tradition by sardonically referring to Satan as "my master" despite the word's typical use to refer to God. I personally hope that's the explanation, because it's deep and interesting and the only other explanation is that they misused the word, but the tone of that excerpt sounds like a religious psalm. Again, could all be sarcastic, but it's interesting either way.
Eh, these guys are labelmates, but…I just can't get into this thing. The production is too damn clean IMO…love some of the older stuff, though…I will definitely be there in Austin to see them on tour, though. I need to give this LP a few more spins.