Bactotavaiy / Agor / Azar

Three bands with three styles on one CD

The Algerian label Dark Arts offers on this compilation three different bands from the local metal scene. Each one of them has its unique style so that it provides some impressions on how music from this country sounds like. The originally name of each demo, from which the tracks were taken, has been added to the band’s name for this review.

Bactotavaiy – Bactotavaiy
Old-school influences black metal from Algeria
61

It is the part of Bactotavaiy to open the CD and they offer a quite interesting piece of Black Metal. For a first demo and being from a country like Algeria, their music is better than expected. Even though the songs suffer from the lack of a drummer and a bad production, there is some potential in the band, which can be examined in the tracks ‘Chapter III’ and ‘Chapter IV’. Left aside the Intro and the Outro, it can be noted that at least fifty percent of their part of the compilation are unique in their own sense and style. I would go so far to state that those two outstanding tracks have the quality to bear comparison with those of bands from more recognized scenes. With a good deal of catchiness and a nice riff-structure they are really enjoyable and lift the demo over the swamp of disabilities offered by bands from the underground scene.

Bactotavaiy sticks closely to the core essences of Black Metal, although with one exception: they use a bass. Those who might outcry at this moment phrases like ‘Blasphemy!’ should settle down a bit. The band has plastered the sound of the instrument enough to make it vanish under a good deal of noise. Some riffs can be recognized at the end of the track, but there is hardly to be heard more of it. Dominating are three elements: the voice and the guitars and the snare drums. This is not untypical and rather quite common, yet the programming of the ‘drum-box’ is often way to monotonous to give the songs additional momentum. It is mainly the part of the guitars to set the pace, while the drums have a supporter-like function and somehow it feels like as if they have been added later; after most of the song-writing/recording had been done. The structure of the riffs as well as the total amount of accords fits well into the category of underground Black Metal. Bactotavaiy is keeping it rather simple and do not try to create too complex melodies or arrangements. Repetition and simplicity are the elements which their music consists of and it is an important element of their song-writing. Rather odd are the vocals with their distortion and strange style. It is the typical screaming attempt, but it sounds a little bit out of place now and then. To a good amount the vocalist uses reverb to make his voice sound crazier or extreme, but it works only to some extent. Even though it is a dominating factor of the music, like previously mentioned, of those three elements it is the least important. Hence a balanced production would have a positive effect on them; as for the music in general.

Bactotavaiy are not bad. They offer on this release two interesting songs and that is more than most other underground bands have to offer; I know what I am talking about. Of course and not surprisingly the production has deficits, but would you expect from an Algerian band? The scene is small and the infrastructure lacks of so much that we take for granted.


Agor – Agur
Metal with a really strange sound
40

The second band on this compilation differs a good deal from the antecedent. Agor is a one-man band and the ‘instruments’ that are used exist only on a computer. Their label ‘Dark Arts’ wrote to me that this should give me an impression how metal underground does sound like. Indeed, it is utterly different from the rest that I have listened to so far, but the question remains if this is good or not.

This is a tough one to answer, because I always try to imagine how this release would sound like if a band and not a pc would play the instruments. What would be the difference and how would they be? Is it possible to transfer the riffs and arrangements one-to-one? This remains unanswered to me, even though I have listened to the demo several times. Despite this general problem Agor is not playing pathetic music or failing in any kind of sense. From the ‘abnormal and strange sound’ emanates a disturbing aspect, which pars pro toto reduces the entire quality. It is this Nintendo-like atmosphere which can be felt through the entire demo that Agor is never able to strip off; as a limiting factor. Why not start a real band or at least use this material as a basis for further elaboration which could be later under more professional circumstances?

For a musician it is a conditio sine qua non to use instruments to perform and create art. This time a computer has done the sampling and some tracks are really ‘interesting’. Though, I cannot help myself by considering the structure of the songs as too simplistic in the way the different kinds of samples are used. Their programming lacks of professionalism and the structure sounds often too generic, without grabbing the attention of the listener. Like a horizontal scroller of the computer games’ early days, Agor’s music is passing by with all its bits and bytes with hardly leaving something behind. It is symptomatic for the Black Metal scene to write songs this way.

Yes, I would categorize this band as (electronic) Black Metal, even though the guitars and the atmosphere do not fit exactly the criteria. The vocals and the tempo of some songs, though, would qualify the band to play in this genre; if a band like Taigensis claims to play Black Metal, it does not hurt to categorize Agor under the same phrase. While speaking of the vocals, it should be noted that some more elaboration would be necessary to have a positive effect on the songs. This dark guttural murmuring is nothing but odd, without fitting to the music; they are annoying in their own sense and way. If some kind of distortion has been used, is hard to say, although perhaps it is rather obvious, as the whole music is based upon electronics.

The programming of the instruments is not bad. Switches in tempo, variation in the riffs and also a bass-like element have been used as compositional elements. My impression of the songs is that their design is too simple and could use some more elaboration; not to mention complexity. Like a lot of underground bands, Agor tries to use monotonous and repetitive song structures to create an atmosphere. As stated before, the electronic sound is itself rather disturbing, hence the structure and composition of the songs only fosters the negative impression. Agor is not totally failing, though, as one might guess from my harsh criticism. There are indeed some nice riffs and melodies in the songs, yet they are too rare to raise the music out of the swamp of mediocrity.

Well, there has been worse music than Agor, but also far better. If someone got used to the sound of the demo, it is possible to enjoy the music to a certain extent. Unlike other underground bands this one negative facet of the release does not entirely disturb the listening experience, yet its impact should not be dismissed.


Azar – Damya
Metal meets ambient and folk from Algeria
35

The last band on this compilation plays the weirdest kind of music on this release: a combination of dance beats, ambient, folk and small metal springs. Somehow it is becoming more difficult to write about the music the longer the CD runs. Not that an increase of complexity can be noted, yet to find the right words for the music has become quite challenging.

Agor has used various kinds of instruments to create the music on their share on this split-CD. Beside a guitar, samples as well as computer generated sounds found their way on this record. Not surprising a great ‘variety’ in style and in composition can be found on their part. Like in a package of ‘liquorice allsorts’, there is always a piece for every taste; you get the idea? To some, this package full of surprises might be fascinating and appealing, but the reality is rather an annoyance of the majority. There is simply too much of everything and a concentration on a single facet is not possible, without the impressions gained from other facets of the music. Each track is utterly different from the other one and the band is not able to transfer the ‘red-line’. Those seven tracks are rather like a (neo-folk) sampler, but nothing close to a coherent framework. Folk songs change to electronic ones and ambient ones back to folk ones.

The lack of proper equipment has an undisputable negative effect on the music and their sound reminds me on old computer games from the Amiga era. Hence the songs have some nice and chilling atmosphere and it can be compared to some extent to compositions offered by ‘old pc music’ forums in the internet. Furthermore lack the tracks of quality in the song-writing and rather flow by without leaving something behind. Their structure is often too simple and without parts which might grab the attention of the listener in the long run. Some nice ideas are offered, but they have not been fully elaborated.