Horizont událostí

After teasing their fans with demos, splits and EPs, the Czech crew finally released their debut album Horizont událostí (Event Horizon) in 2008. And it was well worth the wait. Czechia has its fair share of great and overlooked grindcore bands, and this is a prime example of that. In fact, as of writing this review, this is my favourite Czech grindcore release ever, and believe me when I say it's certainly not due to a lack of competition.

Since I have the CD, I'll briefly talk about the artwork and the package. It's quite an inconspicuous scene actually: a guy with an instrument on his back (a double bass?) in front of the Flatiron building in New York on the front and the Czech National Theatre in Prague on the back. Inside is a booklet featuring some band photos, Czech and English lyrics, and the CD itself, a yellow disc titled Faster than death, harder than life – Gride.

As is obvious from the first few seconds, this is not your standard grindcore record. Gride feature a healthy portion of powerviolence in their grindcore, as well as thrash and some other genres. You could even use the term avant-garde and I wouldn't argue with that. What this album lacks in breakneck speed and nonstop balls to the wall aggression, it more than makes up for it with diversity, passion and even technicality. It's quite rare for each track of a grindcore record to stand out, but that is very much the case here. 38° ve stínu (38° in the shade) starts with that somewhat cliché screech of an intro, then follows up with a fast section before doing a U turn into a groovy marching rhythm. Nenávist and I na barikády… have (crossover) thrash bits, Červený nebo modrý (Red or blue) has a jazzy (blues, even?) intro reminiscent of early Black Sabbath, etc.

All of the musicians are at the top of their game. Both of the guitars complement each other wonderfully, as they slice through track after track. The unexpected bass is present throughout the entire length and provides a great background for the riffs and melodies. Čert, who has been the band's backbone, both musically and personally, goes totally wild on the drums. He never tires you with a particular beat for too long and always has something up his sleeve. Iny on vocals showcases a gradual evolution from the harsh, unintelligible shrieks and screams of the previous work, to a deeply felt and emotional, yet still rousing hardcore vocal this time. At times, he is joined by his bandmates, which works great in songs such as Někdo tu byl. Additionally, three songs begin with samples and/or noise, very well chosen at that, building the tension and atmosphere wonderfully. And the production, to top it all off, turned out fine. My only gripe with it is that when compared to the band's next full-length effort, Záškuby chaosu, the drum sound could have been better here.

The lyrics are something else, too. If I had to choose top 3 Czech bands in terms of lyrics, it would be !T.O.O.H.!, Master's Hammer and Gride. Each track is esentially a poem with multiple layers to it. Even a simple song like 38° ve stínu, describing a hot, exhausting summer day, is written in such a poetic way. Most of the songs mention some sort of protest or rebellion, in a mostly non-violent way, at least not in the forefront. Na jatka… is about a consumer society, Červený nebo modrý mentions a time bomb, as well as the Prague Spring events of 1968. Two tracks stand out the most: Plán B describes an inmate digging out of his cell, only for the listener to find out in the end that it was more of a metaphorical escape of the prisoner's mind from its constraints. Někdo tu byl builds a solid atmosphere with an ominous, industrial sounding sample and a crying baby, before slowly beginning its assault. The lyrics then focus on the protagonist finding a suicide note, with the victim hanging in the garden from a tree. Once again there's a subtle second meaning - is he simply metaphorically burying his reckless, drunken, youthful past? It's up to you to decide…