Necronemesis

For a long time, the only thing I knew about Usurper was a band photo I had seen in a music magazine, which was of five guys in denim, leather, and spikes standing in a wintry landscape in front of a tree that had obviously dripped a lot of water and then frozen in the middle of the water's descent, so that there were great spikes of ice hanging from the branches. The magazine printed the photo as once of the best pictures of the year and commented that the band's alcohol-laden rider was just out of sight. That juxtaposition of wintry grimness and fun-loving heavy metal excess seems to typify Usurper as a band and also pick out their greatest problem.

On the one hand, these Americans are soaked in the spirit of heavy metal and make a big thing of celebrating the music and the history of their beloved. There are plenty of references to metal itself, as well as a few bands, notably Celtic Frost, the homage to whom almost verges on worship at times. I've never been a big Frost fan, but I can really hear the way that (the in no way over-monickered) General Diabolical Slaughter takes the concept of the death grunt and the gruff low-pitched vocals from Tom G Warrior and plasters them over many of the songs on 'Necronemesis', to the extent that you are always waiting for the next "Urrrgh!" or "Heeeeeeyyy!" to erupt over the slow-moving sludge thrash chug. That said, on the other hand, Usurper always did more than play with Celtic Frost's proto-extreme mix of genres, and there are notable black metal moments on this album that actually provide a great deal more excitement and originality than the sluggish Frost imitations. What happens to 'Necronemesis' is that those two directions never quite manage to gel, since there is a vast difference between the lo-fi primitive bluntness of Celtic Frost's bestiality and the sharpened trembling of icy black metal, meaning that individual songs sometimes flip between styles during their length or sit uncomfortably alongside their neighbours due to the contradiction of different parts.

I must admit that for me, the black metal parts contain more interest than the chugging riffs, since the production doesn't suit mid-pace, Rick Scythe's guitar not having the forcefulness and crushing power to carry the grooves into the skull of the listener. In fact, 'Necronemesis' contains even less guitar power than the songs recorded earlier in Usurper's career, which is more than just a shame, since the grimy girth of the 'Visions from the Gods' demo would have been great for a song like 'The Incubus Breed'. With the volume way up, some of the doom parts start to make more sense, such as the doomy 'Into the Oblong Box' or the slower chorus of 'Warriors of Iron and Rust', though I would prefer to be tipsy when listening to that one, just because the riffs don't quite merit sober scrutiny enough to convince me of their quality. 'Slaughterstorm' is one of the most flat-out songs on this album, staying at a high tempo throughout and remaining dangerously unpredictable as a result - the protracted scream at the end could be seen as just a gimmick, yet there's something elementally sincere and visceral as you hear the General's voice stretch and start to break. The title track also manages to elude expectations, though this time the game is messier, the band firing in acoustic sections and a sudden cameo by King Diamond that sounds slightly baffling as his piercing shriek erupts into the gruff riffs of the song.

For this kind of music, the thing that matters is if the listener can get caught up in it. As far as I'm concerned, there is always something preventing me from completely losing myself and just enjoying the experience, be that the shifts in style or the slightly lifeless low-end production. There are many good parts in 'Necronemesis', but those parts rarely meet each other and boost the quality of one another. The songwriting is poor, even if individual sections are worthy of some praise. For example, 'Funeral Waters' is an infuriating example of a band not knowing how to use their ideas. It starts off with a rolling major key black thrash part, then stumbles over a chuggy verse with annoyingly clean vocals, comes into a marching riff with the wrong drum beat, an atmospheric clean interlude, and later a frantic melodic solo that ends up in a cheesy voiceover. It's frustrating because those parts should have been welded together tightly to give the song velocity and a suprise factor (why not zip out of that solo into the rising intro riff and follow it with a refrain?), yet it never happens. Knowing what could have been and seeing potential squandered is a bigger disappointment than seeing a band with little potential do their best, so 'Necronemesis' - interesting moments aside - ends up a distinctly lacklustre experience.

I have to admit that I've always been halfway impressed by this band. Reliable sources have told me that their earlier material is actually much better than their later (a lot of bands are like this, though), and one day I would like to examine that for myself. Right now I just don't have the time. And even though this album was recorded at Nomad Studios in Carrollton (where Absu and King Diamond also record, and where the last Mercyful Fate opus was put on tape), about five miles from my house, I can not really inspire myself to listen to this more than the few times it takes to get a good impression of it for this review. I don't know how many times I'll be putting this on.

This band really stands out among the rest of the Necropolis roster, and even though that label seems to be leaning in a more 'retro' direction these days with their death metal releases, there just aren't that many bands out there that sound like Usurper. Usually this would be a good thing for me, as I like originality in bands, but there are times when 'originality', for all of its positive connotations, just fails to move me. Usurper are a good band, I don't think many would claim the opposite, but there are also many good bands out there, and what they have to offer, at the last reckoning, in terms of their sound, presentation, and stylistic force, is what it all comes down to: in other words, I don't care how 'good' they are, I just want something that opens up new doors in the listening space. This doesn't.

For most of this record Usurper stick to a mid-tempo crunch, staying close to their Celtic Frost roots, slamming out bruising simple riffs, pounding, crushing, pulverizing, blah... they sound more like Warrior and crew than ever: it makes you want to curse the people (critics?) who first drew this band's attention to the fact that they had a genre (that of shameless CF-abuse) pigeonholed and could expect to remain there relatively untouched by all the other starvelings of the myriad metal subgenres. There are some derivations: I like the eerie textures and bleak atmosphere in the second song 'Slaughterstorm', especially the exploding break that occurs at 1:17 into the song. This song also stands out because it starts and continues at a fast pace, and I noticed while I was listening to this that, contrary to the usual aesthetics for these kinds of bands (meaning mid-tempo 'heavy' groups) Usurper's sound actually seems to expand and grow more complex as they speed up - that is, it becomes fuller, richer, and (somehow) more contemporary. I've also noticed that their live sound is very different from their sound on disc. But this album left me wishing they would increase the tempo more often in the future.

So yes, their Frost 'influence' (it's not really fair to CF to call it that) is pursued here somewhat obstinately, doggedly, with a view to making it oppressively obvious to anyone whose ears are caught by even the opening chords. The vocals are the most extreme in following this: after halfway through this, you begin to really grow sick of the singer's burbling burped primitive death-grunts and his incessant shouts of 'heyyyyyyyy!'. Once in a song would have been more than enough. The vocal phrasing and guitar music is also very close to CF on certain songs, and on the last song they seem to do a little medley of take-offs on CF lyrics... alright, we get the picture.

But I also have it on good authority that these guys are honest, and that they just want to enjoy what they are doing: spreading the plague of 'true' metal, and flying the flag high. So I don't fault them for any of this - they obviously love what they are doing, love old school metal, and want to play what they enjoy. Most musicians should be so lucky. I might not be able to jump in the race with them, but I wouldn't be so pathetic as to shoot the legs out from under the machine they've become... I suppose if you like their earlier releases, you will like this.

UA

Erebus Magazine
http://erebuszine.blogspot.com

Necronemesis, the third full length effort from Chicago's blackest (and I don't mean skin tone) band Usurper, would mark a moderate departure from the sound of their previous work. Where before we had a crushing example of post-Hellhammer, we now have a ball fisted, bludgeoning thrash force which more closely resembles some bastard spawn of Rigor Mortis and early Hallows Eve, with the band's fondness for witchcraft, monsters and dark folklore now in full bloom. You can still hear the Celtic Frost whenever General Diabolical Slaughter belches out a 'Hey!', and perhaps in some of the riffing, but this record pays heed to a far wider scope of thrash, death and black metal influences.

To be honest, I thought it was a step back from Skeletal Season, albeit a small one. The band still had the chops to conjure up their morbid walls of atmospheric, thrashing doom, but the utterly crushing tones of a Diabolosis or Threshold of the Usurper are missing here, replaced by some rather average thrash riffs. Granted, they were never exactly virtuosos, and in fact Necronemesis does have some faster fare here than normal like "Full Metal Maelstrom" or "Slaughterstorm", though the latter reminds me in spots of "Necrocult Part 1" from their 1997 EP. The leads here are far more furious, but the overall tone of the album felt a little dry to me, rather than the ominous killing sprees the band had previously committed.

There are several diamonds in the rough, with a dull shine, one of which would be the morose title track, a slowly building, chugging atmospheric thrash exercise with guest vocals courtesy of none other than the great King Diamond himself. Usurper had covered "Charon", and Mercyful Fate's "Black Funeral" on previous releases, so this was undoubtedly a huge moment for the band, to be graced with their lord and savior. "Warriors of Iron and Rust" is suitably warlike and violent, though the lyrics about metal, leather and alcohol were already feeling a little corny as early as 2000. Thankfully, they are an exception here, as most of the bands lyrics still deal in themes of horror and other cult obscurity. "Full Metal Maelstrom" is a head on blitz featuring guest vocals from Proscriptor of Absu, and "Into the Oblong Box" is a slowly bouncing track that feels like it would have been right at home on Hallow's Eve's Tales of Terror.

A decade later, I admit I've never really had the urge to reach for this on the shelf when better options were available, as in the rest of the band's catalog. Something about Necronemesis screams average, though the band might have great taste in guest vocalists and song titles. At the same time, there is really nothing offensive about it. The riffs just fall a little flat, and the atmosphere not nearly oppressive enough to compensate. I suppose if you were adamant about collecting all of the band's works, you might not find this too far a stretch from Skeletal Season, but in my opinion its a rather dull impression on the skull.

-autothrall
http://www.fromthedustreturned.com

Compared to many of the Celtic Frost inspired "grunt and slide" bands Usurper crunch, maim and doom along like few others can even attempt to match. Intelligent yet thuggish, drunken yet right on time...Usurper are one of the few black metal bands that didn't turn into a former shadow of themselves upon aging. "Necronemesis" may not be the brilliant record that was "..Season" but it's skill very good. As usual, the production is well spaced and accurate (though may favorite drum sound got dumped), the playing is spot on and the vocals are the groaning death-chants I've come to love over the years. Yes children, Usurper came to kill...

Aside from the wonderful King Diamond guested title track the killer tracks on this CD include the clean-vocal (?!) attack of "The Incubus Breed", the great "Deathwish" and the death-groan of "Funeral Waters". Nothing on this CD sucks...at all. Usurper keep their crown as the most consistent and wonderful of black metal bands and this rides the winds of hell to remain at a "cult" status that is far too small for these blokes. The only misstep is a certain lack of "mood" compared to the other CD's but this is a minor quibble. The performance and writing are wonderful.

Usurper have done it again...and again. Consistent, deadly, violent and better than Celtic Frost post-Morbid Tales the band has outdone their heroes 100%. I love this CD almost as much as I love the early ones, and all fans of black, doom or death should also check out this coffin-creak of a release.

BUY OR DIE!!!