Final Urge to March

It saddens me that when most people think of "pretty" metal, their thoughts automatically go to some cheesy band mixed with Metalhead-Approved Non-Metal Music, like Agalloch whose folk influences obviously make them the epitome of high art. Frankly, I find stuff like this a lot more fascinating and beautiful - metal that manages to capture the essence of non-metal genres without actually drawing outside influences to accomplish it.

Grand Mood are one of a handful of bands associated with the Pacific Northwest label CW Productions; the most famous bands they've fostered are probably Furdidurke and Cirrhus, but practically every band associated with the label is united in a sort of "sound", so to speak: all the bands signed there play primitive, raw black metal with rehearsal-esque levels of recording quality, mixed with quirky melodies and bouncy, punky beats to spice up the rhythms. Final Urge to March could essentially be considered the ultimate realization of this sound, a mature and solid representation of its potential while also expanding upon the basic framework of the "CW sound".

The first thing to take note of here is that the music doesn't really sound or feel like conventional black metal at all. Grand Mood don't use any carving, dissonant tremolo riffs or anything else which sounds remotely "evil", but instead go for a light, soaring approach. I should clarify at this point that despite its location, Grand Mood aren't "Cascadian black metal" in the sense that that term usually describes - there's nothing even remotely folky here, not to mention the music isn't nearly as unjustifiably grandiose as the average Cascadian band. It's just that the music is, well, "airy". Yeah, I think "airy" is the word that best describes the entire performance here: Grand Mood's songs feel totally weightless, as if the melodies are carried in on light breezes and hover through the air like a musically trained swarm of insects. Alternating blast beats with a thick snare and a contrastingly light and jingly hi-hat are usually used to give a bit of speed to these floaty, grandiloquent riffs, with probably the best example being the riffs near the middle and end sections of "Iron Cornucopia".

But while the music never sounds malicious, it does occasionally stop being airy for moments at a time. The bass guitar is ever-present and gives the music just enough weight to not sound top-heavy, so the airy approach doesn't ever feel like it's being pursued at the expense of sonic balance. The bouncy, cascading riff in the title track is backed by a set of slightly heavier rhythm guitars; likewise, the opening riff of "Iron Cornucopia" is pretty mid-pitched and grounded, and actually ends up sounding kind of like a punchy post-punk riff with forceful, practically anthemic chords. Even in these sections, though, the lighter guitars are flourishing in the higher registers of the music, fluttering through the air with fluffy bits of nostalgic melodies.

The vocals are somewhat buried and subtle, but their sound actually fits the music quite well. The general approach to the vocals sounds somewhat strained and confused (in a good way); cracking and unstable wails are predominantly used, along with a surprisingly vicious rasp that hisses through the riffs on occasion. Part of me wishes they were a bit louder within the overall mix, though, because they really are good and they're kind of buried by the riffs more often than not.

If I had to direct one complaint towards Final Urge to March, I guess it would be that while the whole approach is undeniably unique, a lot of the individual riffs are only good instead of great and could stand to be improved upon. "Walking Through Wind" is a rather faceless song compared to the other two and doesn't have many interesting features or riffs; in fact, I usually tend to just think of it as a drawn-out interlude between the opening and closing tracks because it lacks any sort of flair. But please don't let that deter you: all the riffs are interesting to listen to if nothing else, the amount of rawness is just perfect (enough to cradle the music in a pleasant-sounding cocoon, but it doesn't have a harsh or punishing amount of treble either), and the soaring, breeze-like sound hasn't really ever been done this well, even by other CW bands. This is some wonderfully abstract and airy black metal, and out of all the no-name black metal bands' demos out there, this has to be one of the best. This tape can be found in pretty much any BM distro for $5 or less, go give one a home.