Review Summary: A concise descent into a sci-fi tinged hell, the selective usage of electronics on Kwintessens pays dividends for Dodecahedron's progression.
2012’s
Dodecahedron saw its namesake join the ranks of other bands, perhaps unfairly viewed as Deathspell Omega mimics, plying their trade within the more technically-focused world of avant-garde black metal. While imperfect, it largely fulfilled its goals of being truly hideous – a cascading mass of blast beats, impossible to monitor riffs, and with it a fascinating (if not bewildering) interplay between its musical components. It comes as little surprise then, that
Kwintessens, like Dodecahedron’s eponymous predecessor, has only one real focus – the proliferation of angular, misshapen dread through an avant-garde prism. However, the outcome is certainly not so cut and dried as that.
That said, Dodecahedron haven’t exactly gone soft, as their ability to devise ingenious, sordid batteries of music has only keened in the five years separating their self-titled from
Kwintessens. ‘TETRAHEDRON…’ proves an almost instantaneous testimony to this assertion, as arachnid guitars weave anarchic looms around the bellicose, almost defiantly changeable drums, before allowing themselves to be consumed by their percussive counterparts. Never far from a tempo change, their proclivity for snapping between low- and high-tempo sections is a commonly utilised trick in their songwriting arsenal; to give one example, ‘OCTAHEDRON…’ slowly breaks down into an unnerving, cavernous midsection, only to assault the listener once more towards its end. This is, obviously, nothing new, and as the album’s second half progresses one finds oneself grateful for closer ‘ICOSAHEDRON…’, arguably
Kwintessens’ most doom-laden cut, which dials back the pacing somewhat to yield a thoroughly chilling conclusion.
Arguably the most telling detail with regards to their intensity comes with the way they handle their instrumental passages. The introductory vignette of such albums is normally one of the few respites the listener receives, the band choosing to set an ‘eerie’ atmosphere before pounding its recipient into submission. Not so with
Kwintessens, opener ‘Prelude’ collapsing into snare-destroying, dense mania before even its first minute rings out. Similarly, where bridging pieces would typically be more ambient fare, blackgaze-styled ‘Interlude’ shifts from shimmering guitars to off-kilter drums and eventually characteristically warlike riffs; indeed, where Dodecahedron
do opt for the more ‘traditional’ direction for an interim (on ‘Finale’), the grainy ambience and noises come across as far more unnecessary than its more musically viable counterparts.
As alluded to however, it’s not all brooding malevolence, blood and thunder; the little details hidden within its calculated mess are the ones that make
Kwintessens engagingly human. As ‘OCTAHEDRON – Harbinger’ reaches some kind of early climax (a mere 2 minutes in), emerging from the usual melange of furious drumming, indecipherable guitar-work and Eikenaar’s bilious gnashings, a plaintive wail of guitar emanates from the barrage, akin to a crying child in a centre of a firefight. Several other moments like this exist within its makeup, but it’s the surprising (if slightly sparing) usage of electronics that truly draws
Kwintessens towards individuality. The swells towards the end of ‘TETRAHEDRON…,’ for example, draw imagery of a distant emergency siren – a peculiarly mournful image alongside its largely unsubtle approach. In the same vein, distant hums dash ‘HEXAHEDRON…’ with a distinct dark sci-fi flavour, although it’s ‘DODECAHEDRON…’ that delivers possibly
Kwintessens’ greatest shock; cooling, almost empyreal synths herald its introductory phase, recurring towards its final moments under a shroud of drums and distortion. The effect is bizarre and a little jarring, yet is a much-needed tonic to an album otherwise proud of its oppressive climate.
To their credit, Dodecahedron keep proceedings mercifully short. As should be apparent by now, this is not an insinuation of
Kwintessens’ quality not being what it should – far from it – but simply that an hour of their warped approach to black metal would be a trial of concentration if nothing else. While the pitfalls of their chosen style lend to almost inherent periods of homogeny, the Dutch quintet are slowly forging a noisy, distinctive niche-within-a-niche for themselves. Inventive and forward thinking, yet keeping the avant-garde leanings within the confines of the wholly unpleasant - like a sci-fi tinged nightmare.
