Pain Amplifier

Mythos was the short-lived side project of Belial guitarist Jukka Valppu. Whilst Belial were more of a death metal band playing black metal, Mythos, on their sole LP ‘Pain Amplifier’ (can’t even write that with a straight face) released in 1995, pushed the flowing melodicism of black metal front and centre. But a sheen focused on the aggressive in favour of the epic was painted on top of this, thanks to a pronounced grindcore influence throughout. The guitars, although marginally thin, would not feel out of place on death metal in the European tradition. But here they are more than up to the task of accenting brief melodic licks as well as completely covering the low of the mix in murk during the faster tremolo picked passages. The result is one of those fine marriages of opposites, the regal sophistication of black metal aspiring to esotericism, and down and dirty punk rock energy. In this instance the vocals side with the former, utilising a very traditional monstrous growl. Drums offer simple but tight blast-beats and modest fills, very much operating on the metric of less is more; the intent is to fill out the sound and add to the power of the guitars rather than offer dazzling musicality in its own right.

The resulting album is built from a foundation of dirt. The resonating mirk of the guitars, the ghoulish vocals, sometimes split across multiple tracks, the consistency of the skin bashing attack, all create an underlying swirl of darkness at the core of ‘Pain Amplifier’. But it becomes apparent that these primitivist trappings are simply lulling us into a false sense of security. Much like ‘Ugra Karma’, the riffs are on a quest to transcend their primordial soup and articulate melodies and narratives with a purpose. Oddly compelling melodies will frequently rise above the mix and grab the rest of the music and pull it forward. This works doubly well through the simplicity of their execution, but given the effectiveness of their contrast with the rest of the music, nothing overly complex is required.

But the other virtue to the texture that manifests out of this mixing pot is atmosphere. Mythos seem acutely aware of black metal’s potential as ambient music, even in a variant such as this which seems pretty distant from the ambient end of the genre. But no, the combination of an imposing guitar tone that itself will dictate the kind of riffs that can actually be composed and played effectively with said tone, a vocal performance of conviction, consistent drum patterns, and the subtlest shift in key, all amount to a unique atmosphere that could approximate a synth pad all of its own. This story of texture and timbre explains some of the compositional choices found on ‘Pain Amplifier’. Because the riffs themselves – whilst competent – are not all that remarkable. But in this context, they don’t need to be. They follow on intuitively from one another, and they all coalesce to form music with an atmosphere and feel all of their own. And that’s just as true in this heavily grindcore influenced setting as it would be Norway or the Mediterranean. The album closes with a cover of Carcass’s ‘Reek of Putrefaction’, which only illustrates this point further. Like the tiny causal event that instigates cataclysmic changes, in playing riffs that are unmistakably from the death/grind tradition in this setting the whole mood changes. When the aesthetic is this specific, the mood is transformed by even a mild shift in musical philosophy.

Originally published at Hate Meditations

There's something unapologetic about the only long-player CD from Mythos, the one-and-only Pain Amplifier. Glorious is it in its simplicity, it's grinding guitar tone, its stripped-down formula and production -- its overwhelming energy and stamina.

A side project from Jukka Valppu (of Belial fame), and a few others, Mythos would live only in a few releases, Pain Amplifier being the most well-defined. Released on Evil Omen records, I'd consider yourself lucky if you came across the actual printed CD (as I did long ago). Electronic sources, of course, are always an option.

And ultimately I would explore those options if you like overwhelmingly powerful grinding noise with a death/black edge. That's where Mythos is coming from. This isn't brainy material. It's a noisy, raspy needle-pinned monstrosity, filled with frantic drumming and tremelo-picked full-chord strumming, and raspy black/death vocals. Pain Amplifier is quite an assault on the ears -- even to the point of monotony at times, but always ripe and saturated, given over to the maximum volume that can be obtained, with the most distortion.

The opening track Hung on the Wings is of particular note, with its cyclical grind punctuated by slowdown gore-grind riffing and roughshod screeching in the background. Actually, this is a bit of a formula that can be heard elsehwere as well. And it's one that I enjoy - blast-beat madness, followed by a groovy slower riff section. In Veiled Language displays this structure quite well, and a few others.

Overall, there's a grandiose feel to these songs that make them seem even more total, more overwhelming, than they probably are. It's go-for-broke thrashing death/black/grind. Not complicated, but always on point to deliver the most power and noise imaginable. If you are feeling like you want a little time to forget life, and sink into the madness of heavy, noisy, outrageous blackness -- I wholly recommend Pain Amplifier.

I do knock the album a bit for being too even, without a whole lot of change or distraction. But then again that's what this is all about. Pain Amplifier is attempting to rape you in an ugly, consistent way. It's not trying to be subtle, or "change things up," or anything like that. This is intended to be an aural assault on the ears. Dynamics are not in the cards.

I don't hear much about this release. I feel its really top notch, but it was done almost as an afterthought and not given really any attention. That makes it even more attractive to me. Those looking for something well off the beaten track but still extremely well done, look no further. Track down Pain Amplifier, turn the volume up until your speakers buckle, and freak out. This one won't disappoint.

Never have I seen a more aptly titled album. Pain Amplifier is shredding, Finnish Death Metal of the highest caliber. Featuring former Belial guitarist Jukka Valppu, Mythos burst onto the scene almost out of nowhere with one of the heaviest albums in Death Metal history. Mikko Laurila's vocals sound almost as if he literally vomited them forth, and the music is tight and suprisingly catchy considering the ultra brutal nature of the whole thing. This brings to mind Wisdom of Darkness era Belial, which was a blessing in disguise considering how that band had gone the Goth route around the time Pain Amplifier was released. Out of the 11 tracks on this release, "Unreal Moon" stands out to me as the catchiest, with an amazing solo from Valppu midway through. An awesome cover of Carcass' classic "Reek of Putrefaction" rounds out this blazing affair, and seeing as how this was the only full-length from this band, this is a fitting monument to the annals of Death Metal history.

Even though Evil Omen Records is long gone, this one is still available through a few select distros, as well as several import and "mom and pop" record stores for a fairly cheap ($11 in one store near me) price.