Shores

The closest that extreme metal has ventured into the realm of overt dadaism has been among the more depressive fringes of the black metal, a style that often defies the very conventions of metal music. Often times the musical results can flirt a bit more with a post-rock feel between the droning character of the instrumental content and the raw, unbalanced character of the production practices employed. All of that considered, there are few bands that have veered a greater distance outside of the norms of metal than the experimental crowd, and among the more unique sounding adherents to this niche is Finnish duo Circle Of Ouroborus. Then again, the sound that they have seemingly stumbled upon with their 2006 debut LP Shores is not without precedent, particularly when considering the unmixed and garage-like character of certain early French adherents of the black metal scene.

It has often been noted that this band has a sort of latent hardcore punk demeanor to their music, drawing comparisons to the likes of Nuit Noire, but this particular studio offering contains very little in the way of overt punk tendencies and has more of a droning, post-rock vibe that carries heavy parallels to the Les Légions Noires bands of the French scene, and more specifically Mutiilation and Belkètre. The shimmering character of the fuzz-driven guitars, whether they be gliding through a set of minimalist tremolo leads or pounding on a mid-paced groove; combined with a largely dissonant sense of tonality and an extremely distant and tinny drum sound gives things a rustic, garage demo feel. Nevertheless, despite the generally loose demeanor of things, there is a precision behind the droning doom character of songs like "Invocation" and the mid-paced, depressive stride of "You Are Just Mirrors" that goes beyond an amateur bedroom project.

Taken on its musical merits alone, this is an album that is fairly conventional in spite of its raw presentation, but things take a rather drastic and utterly bizarre turn when it comes to the vocal presentation. There is a case to be made that this album's latent punk tendencies are largely wrapped up in Antti Klemi nonchalant, mostly out of tune middle ground between an apathetic croon and a disinterested spoken verse. There are occasional fits of garbled rage more befitting a conventional black metal affair, but for the most part, these songs have sort of a shoegazing quality that could be likened to an early Meat Puppets recording. Some moments on the more grooving rocker turned d-beat romp "The Cloak" find this unorthodox vocal approach working with the music around it, but otherwise Antti's marble-mouthed semi-singing proves to be a clashing element that detracts from the album's relatively solid presentation.

It goes without saying that an album like this is an acquired taste, and even among the more fringe adherents of the raw variant of black metal, this music may prove to be a bit of an adjustment from familiar territory. There is something to be said for the sentiments that these songs would work better as instrumentals, but the lyrics do provide some necessary topical detailing to keep the longer offerings on here from becoming overly repetitive, it's just that a more conventional sepulchral growl or even an unconventional series of depressive wails would work better than the "I've got some words but I don't really give a shit" approach taken here. Not a bad offering to be sure, and even contains some solid layering of ideas that goes a bit beyond the Varg Vikernes brand of minimalism that was popularized following Filosofem, but there are definitely stronger offerings out there.

Here's an album that ever since my initial listen I've been constantly going back and forward one, wondering whether this is a masterpiece of black metal and a truly unique and original album, or a pathetic attempt at trying to be a stand out in a scene that is so often riddled with stagnation. Yet despite leaning slightly to the former, there are certainly elements of the latter that I simply cannot ignore. I shall go into them in much more detail further on in the review, but for now I shall comment on the positives.

First and foremost, this is weird, lawdy lawd is this album ever so weird! The music is described as black metal yet the music isn't what you'd expect from such a genre. The guitars certainly have a blackened feel to it, yet to describe them as such takes away the uniqueness of what this album contains. The guitars have a distinctive garage rock feel to them, they sound improvised to an extent, the playing is sloppy, the distortion is pretty insane and overall the guitars just sound really unprofessional and amateurish. Yet interestingly enough, I find this somehow beneficial rather than detrimental. The guitar playing as a result is incredibly passionate. Sort of how a film with a limited budget expresses the purest feelings of the director, so does this album. To me it feels as though the band wanted to get their music out there, not for financial gain or fame, but purely because they want to communicate what they had inside of them to those who would care to listen. That dear readers, is a beautiful and earnest thing. Shores ultimately reflects that, completely focused on the message, of the meaning behind the music. The music is a fantastic catalyst in portraying this message. It's incredibly simple, with only a few minimalistic riffs present within each song and there's not much variation between them. Standard minor chord melodies mixed with a more upbeat, perhaps one could say quirky edge. There's a definite post punk vibe to it which helps set it apart from much of the genre. Yet this blending of styles is never overdone, feeling like a natural blending of the two rather than a bastardization of the two parent genres. The blacker sections are atmospheric, at times depressive, at times delightfully upbeat. Whilst punkier songs such as You are just Mirrors delight in their own drunken quirkiness, it's an odd mixture between quirkiness and depression yet it works phenomenally well.

Yet whilst I have made Shores sound like a masterpiece of musical expression so far with this review, there are a few problems that need working out. Firstly the vocals, now many will praise them for their uniqueness and I certainly give the band credit for daring to pull off something like this. But dear god can the vocalist at least learn to sing in tune! He sings in the same pitch, same tone, uses the same intonations, dynamics and pretty much any technical term you can slap on vocals. Yet whilst there is the occasional blackened screech, they are too few and far between to have much of an effect. Admittedly, I would like this album a whole lot more if it was instrumental as the music is nothing short of extraordinary. I understand not wanting to fit in with the crowd, heck I even strongly condone artists to do so. But when the vocals are highly reminiscent of a toothless old man, then I have a problem. I guess when could view this as creating an atmosphere of total apathy, even absolute nihilism which sounds as though its the perfect atmosphere for a black metal album. However I strongly believe that Circle of Ouroborus handled it in the wrong way.

So for what it is, it's pretty good. I really think more work in the vocal department would go along way in helping the band secure a strong reputation. I can understand how this album can be considered a cult classic, Shores really is unlike anything else in the black metal scene. Yet if we are looking at this from a strictly musical standpoint, rather than at the general originality of the music then Shores needs work. The band certainly has the potential to be so much more, just a few tweaks here and there would go along way in advancing the quality of their music. So overall not bad for a first album, just needs more to do.

(originally posted by me on the MetalMusicArchives: http://www.metalmusicarchives.com/ )

Here we have Circle of Ouroborus' Shores album. It's so rare and unheard of that is has to be great right? Right?! Wrong! This is a really bad black metal album.

I've heard in some places that this album has some post-punk influences added to the standard depressive black metal that they play. Except for the cover song, I really don't see it. I've listened to tall the songs here, and the main though I had on my mind concerning the music was "Didn't I already hear Mütiilation do this years ago with Vampires of Black Imperial Blood or Remains of a Ruined, Dead, Cursed Soul?" That's all the music really is: raw black metal with piss-poor production and a difficult to determine note scale. There's nothing really special going for it. Of course, this time around, instead of two French dudes, it's two Finnish dudes. Listen to "Nothingness" for a second and try to tell me that it didn't come from Mütiilation.

The vocals are a big difference from Mütiilation though, but it's one of the bigger reasons why this album is terrible. People for some reason like the apathetic vocal tone on this album; but it seriously sounds like the mix of a goat attempting to mimic human dialogue, and the ramblings of a very old Finnish lady from a small house out on the Finnish countryside. The vocals are what really slammed this album down the hardest. Hearing the singer recite certain lines, especially the refrains of the first two songs, made me want to hit myself in the head with a baseball bat seven or eight times. They were really unpleasant to listen to throughout, and I feel like this review's score would be much higher if the album was actually instrumental.

"Invocation" is probably the best song of the batch here just with the hints of harsh vocals and half-decent guitar lead, but it's not at all capable of damming up the flood of suck coming from this album.

If you're depressed, listen to depressive black metal sounds like a bad idea; because if it's shitty, like this album, it might actually make your condition worse. If you're not depressed, be wary of depressive black metal; because it it's shitty, like this album, you might start really hating life. Stay away from these shores.

Experimental black metal is as hit-or-miss as a sub-genre can be. Although it must be said that there are far more misses than there are hits, unfortunately. Thankfully however this Finnish duo, operating under the moniker of Circle of Ouroborus, fall into the latter category of hit, or at least their debut full-length, entitled ‘Shores’, does. This is a band I have very little experience of, despite having known about them for many years now. I’ve heard their debut countless times but I’ve strangely never sought out their latter efforts, although I do vaguely remember being repulsed by their sophomore effort - I daresay I’ll have to go back to that one some day soon. ‘Shores’ however has always stuck out in my mind as being one of the more pleasurable experiences when it comes to experimental black metal, again, a sub-genre which often fails to establish a connection with me. Circle of Ouroborus aren’t entirely original, although they do have a few characteristics which fit the criteria of true originality - especially when it comes to the vocals, an aspect of the band which could very well be described as hit-or-miss themselves.

The title to the first song, 'Nothingness', actually sums up the vocals pretty well. They're just there, like the nothingness around us. They're not very emotional, they can't really be considered singing, they just are. There’s something about this Finnish duo which has me coming back time and again despite the fact that they’re of relatively small stature when it comes to making an impression on the global black metal scene. With Finland being a hot bed for black metal talent, Circle of Ouroborus only seem to have a small band of dedicated fans, unlike many of their fellow countrymen in black metal bands. With Finland gaining a lot of exposure in terms of its black metal scene, I am surprised that Circle of Ouroborus’ quirky brand of experimental black metal hasn’t hit the ground running, especially since the band have become so prolific when it comes to writing and releasing albums. However, I can understand how this could be off putting to a newcomer. It’s often so difficult to know where to begin. In this day and age one can be forgiven for wanting to sift through the shit to reach the so-called “good stuff” because, lets face it, black metal is a genre particularly burdened by an insane amount of awful bands with atrocious material.

When it comes to a band like this, I myself find it daunting to know where to begin. I suppose it doesn’t matter since they’re an experimental band by definition and are likely to alter their sound from album-to-album. What first struck me about this album before having heard a single song from it was the fact that we have a Joy Division cover. As a Joy Division and post-punk fan, I greeted the decision to include this particular cover with both a sense of apprehension and excitement, two very conflicting emotions. I was pleased that the Finnish duo had decided to break the mould by not covering something generic like Burzum’s ‘War’, a song I detest and being bold and brave by covering something which actually has nothing to do with the genre they play in. However, as a fan of Joy Division, I was met with feelings of apprehension because I didn’t want to listen to another untalented band butcher a song by a band I adore. The cover, whilst not being particularly strong in some departments, is certainly decent enough not to warrant a verbal bashing and ridicule for their choices.

I actually rather enjoyed their take of the song although I don’t think the vocal approach of Circle of Ouroborus suit’s the Joy Division style, although their faster, less refined instrumental passages are actually interesting and far different to most of the covers of this particular song that I have personally heard. However, Joy Division, whilst being exceptional instrumentally, were always a band that relied heavily on the lyrics and vocals of Ian Curtis, so that aspect of the song is rather lost on Circle of Ouroborus, a band which, to their credit, have stuck to their guns in regards to the vocals approach on the song as it is exactly on this song as it is on the entire album - a weird and unusual spoken type of vocals that tend to blur into the distortion of the background. As with most of their song, Circle of Ouroborus also apply their black rock feel to the cover, which I felt was a nice touch. I’m glad that they didn’t ditch their own style when covering a band which has, seemingly anyway, influenced their own sound. The vocals are certainly the main part of this cover which falls flat when you compare the vocalist of this band to the departed Ian Curtis, a man whose voice influenced a generation of post-punk artists. Although his deadpan voice, one which excludes almost all emotion, should fit the song well, it just doesn't.

The album was never going to be won on this cover, although it could very well have been lost on it. Thankfully, it wasn’t, so the rest of the material comes into play when collating my opinions of this piece. The opening song, entitled ‘Nothingness’, is a particularly strong song and one of the best on the album. Much like bands such as Lik, Circle of Ouroborus approach black metal in a very distinctive and unique way. The metallic aspects of the genre are almost washed away by the rock orientated material. The opening song, for example, takes very little from black metal but embraces the occult black rock style of bands like Lik, whom I tend to greatly enjoy. The atmosphere of the band is very important, in fact, it may be the most important aspect of their sound. It has a melancholic tinge to it whilst not being afraid to embrace a more catchy, upbeat style of riffing, one which contains a number of repetitive, but melodic hooks, one’s which should perk at least some of the listeners interest. The material isn’t exactly groundbreaking, but it is good. I can understand why some might refer to this album as a cult classic due to its strange and rather eerie vocal approach, odd choice of cover (one which, for the most part, works well) and the overall mood altering atmosphere. A highly interesting debut, to say the least and one of the better experimental albums within the sub-genre, one ridden with many untalented musicians posing as geniuses.

A comparison with the dutch band Urfaust would be most revealing for Circle of Ouroborus’s style. What instantly arrests the listener’s attention is the vocal methods that the bands employ. Incongruous, yet not substantially different to the Batavians’s singing who use clean, ceremonious, almost ludic vocals, Circle of Ouroborus also remark themselves with a non-growled vox, although used in a different purpose. I am not far from error by saying the front-man is talking rather than singing. His performance brings to mind a murmur, a voice struggling to anchor itself in the rhythm, disillusioned, placid, unimpressed by the scope it serves.

The production scores an essay in the chapter of homosexuality. The guitars and other instruments, in fact the guitars and the drums for save these two there doesn’t seem to be anything else, are frequently cornered by the vocals, which despite their apparent weakness cover them nonchalantly.

The compositions these reindeer-fuckers propose rely on excessive repetition; the only progress is based on the energy used by the band whilst playing. Deconstruction through minute improvisation or complete lack thereof. Circle of Ouroborus try to achieve completely unembarrassed flow of music, a surrender to the purposelessness of existence. The result is as plain as music can get. ‘Shores’ is almost as devoid of odd-time signatures as a sacred monster of the pop box-office, yet how parallel in visions. Although having nothing musically in common with black metal as a genre for it is closer to rock acts, Circle of Ouroborus is black metal as far as black metal can go. It is the full acoustic transposition of it’s philosophy - nihilism made cadence.

Yet however close to ideal ‘Shores’ comes, it’s complete portrayal of purposelessness does no good to my ears. It is in fact comfort of the ear that we seek in music, although opposed to what our intellect may want. Circle of Ouroborus sometimes immerse silently in the background while I listen to them, such is their idiosyncratic quality towards the normal.

Excellent garage BM packs in strong melodies and rhythms, a robust and deep bassy sound and very clear yet darkly sparkling guitars in about 37 minutes but what stands out most is the nasal monotone singing that's a bit out of tune with the music and sort of resembles the voice of Homer Simpson from the cartoon series and, in tracks like "You Are Just Mirrors" and "Wheel of Ahriman", even channels Joey Ramone. The whole recording is very like some long-forgotten underground punk rock classic from the 1970s and songs like "Reading Unwritten Books" (sic) could have come from an early Joy Division demo or one by that band's contemporaries; indeed the duo includes an energetic and hard-hitting rendition of the old Joy Division classic "She's Lost Control" where for once the vocalist's odd and unemotional half-singing / half-speaking style agrees with the fast music (of course, remembering the original version which has a similar match between Ian Curtis's partly spoken style and the more delicate and spare music helps in the comparison). A couple of tracks, "Timbre Noir pt 2" which is an all-instrumental soundscape of raining distorted guitar drone and "Invocation" featuring a slightly muddier ambience of evil and some growling vokills, are as close as the band gets to recognisable black metal.

Overall the spirit and enthusiasm of raw garage rock'n'roll brim throughout the album particularly in songs like "Wheel of Ahriman" and "The Cloak" despite the strange singing which gives the music a distinctive style and charm. I'm prepared to stick my neck out and declare this recording will be a cult classic in years to come: fairly tight musicianship (but not too much so), muscular melodies and rhythms, an idiosyncratic style all the band's own and a dark and cavernous feel ensure this album ROCKS!!!

Here from Finland comes a one man project/band titled Circle of Ouroborus with his first full length album Shores. What you will find on here is something very very unique, literally unlike anything else you will hear, although in a similar field as Urfaust.

The music has little to do with black metal or even metal in general. It is very dark bleak rock-ish music, reminding me of old post-punk stuff meeting with a black metal feeling and raw production. The guitar tone in particular reminds me of Xasthur or something similar, but with a raw edgier vibe. The drums are loud and very prominent, adding a very nice feeling. The vocals are almost mellow, but very depressed, giving a sensation of slow burning melancholia.

The songs are generally short, and although at first they might sound offputting, being so peculiar, they will impress and slowly work their way into your mind, I know that gradually I've become more and more fond of this, listening to it more and more. The atmosphere and attitude of it is what brings me back, it's like entering a dark strange world, playing by its own rules and using its own musical language.

Literally almost no band sounds like this, rather then play like everyone else CoO creates his own music, with touches of black metal, punk and post-punk, tying it all together with a dark atmosphere that makes it easy to recommend to anyone with darker tastes in music. The cover of Joy Division's "Shes Lost Control" simply adds an extra impetus for anyone who is a fan of said band.

If you value originality and unique music over scenesterism and corruption of artistic principle, then check this album out. It is not for everyone, but the best art never is.