Life Ends Here

I’ve found this band (which is now among the most underground bands I have listened to) while searching for artists with insanity as their lyrical theme on EM. I didn’t regret listening to the only demo by the mysterious musicians Kwass (whose name is ridiculously similar to the sour Slavic beverage) and Od (whose is... I don’t know, misspelled "odd"?), for it is a pretty solid and atmospheric, although short, release.

The first track with a pretty cool title "Voices of a Demented Mind" kicks off with an energetic heavy/black metal riff, solid drumming and quiet dark vocals. The song is short and doesn’t have a very complex structure, but the riff replacing the first one at 1:06 is solid. The second song, "Emotionless", is opened by a classic 90s black metal riff (had it been faster, it could’ve easily been on "Pure Holocaust") and then offers an interesting atmospheric black metal/DSBM melody with a curious use of keyboards. Although the song relies heavily on the repetition of the main riff (altering the latter sometimes), it doesn’t get boring thanks to the uneven vocals, the keyboards and the quality of the riff itself. Lastly, the title track is much slower than the first two and most close to "Hvis lyset tar oss" in terms of the structure. Again, a fairly simple, yet, due to the solid melody, effective use of vocals and the mysterious intense atmosphere, a good song (and a very appropriate soundtrack for a rainy morning).

The demo’s production is surprisingly good. The guitars are obviously very raw, but the overall mix is pleasant, the drums and the keyboards are clean and can be easily distinguished from everything else. The vocals are also mixed nicely, and some words are even discernible (very few, but still).

In general, "Life Ends Here" is a good demo. It does not have anything striking to offer, but it’s an enjoyable release with OK riffs, vocals and the overall feeling of the songs. The best thing about it is its diversity. While only having 3 songs with rather primitive structures, it manages to include various styles of riffing and moods within just 12 minutes.