Tape II

Over five years since German solo post-BM act Plague released "Tape I" in early 2017, its successor "Tape II" finally saw the cold light of day on the German cassette label (((dark noiz))) in mid-2022. That metaphor seemed apt to me as the cassette sleeve art shows cloud-like formations in pastel shades that might suggest a cold dawn of an unwelcome new 24-hour period. Well, Plague was in studio-recording hibernation for at least three years from early 2018 to late 2020, and sole member Sebastian B gradually revived the Plague project from mid-2021 onwards with a couple of EP releases. For those who might need an introduction to Sebastian B, this fellow has been active in quite a few delightfully named bands and projects like Al Goregrind, Cognitive Dissonance and Babykiller, all spanning a number of different metal and other genres, and Sebastian B's familiarity with all these styles is reflected in the vast sonic territory "Tape II" covers.

As albums go, "Tape II" is not that lengthy, clocking under 48 minutes, but its musical scope is vast enough that you might feel you've been taken on a continent-wide adventure from the polar regions down to almost hot and humid climate zones, and back again. If you think you can stand the journey, you should try hearing this album in its entirety in one go, as the transition from one music genre to the next, with the corresponding changes in mood and atmosphere, is worth experiencing in itself. The change is less jarring than you might expect as nearly all songs feature elements from more than one genre (though the core black metal / post-BM genre may dominate early on, to be replaced by more doomy melodic music later), with the various elements following one another or occurring together in a way so that the music never sounds chaotic or confused.

The first three songs don't give much away: they might trick you into thinking the album is another typical post-BM work with its combination of soulful acoustic-guitar melancholy, harsh acid-guitar shower / blast-beat percussion aggression and the odd moment of dark blues melancholy. The anguished vocals sound as if they're lost in an abandoned mineshaft deep down underground, fighting against the rapid-fire triggered drumming and the raging guitars which can sometimes turn into rugged chunky riffs. The changes really begin with "Space Travel", fittingly enough, with spoken-word lyrics and a fairly clean post-BM presentation proceeding together, led in parts by a sometimes fuzzy bass guitar melody. Ominous atmosphere, a looming background cold-space drone and some blink-or-you'll-miss-em electronics bring other layers of texture and depth to the track. With "Oceans", the surprisingly pleasant post-rock rhythms and melodies make clear that we've left the darkness and raging chaos of the early tracks behind – but does that mean the rest of the album is going to be smooth sailing through bright blue skies and golden sunshine? "Grosse Weite" pulls us back to Earth a little with mandolin melodies playing against post-BM song structures dominated by tremolo guitar riffs, doomy rhythms and vocals filled with deep despair, agony and pain.

The album continues to alternate between melodic post-BM that includes some doom influence ("65 days") and blackgaze ("amile"), and even more experimental genres such as musique concrete (in the use of found sound samples and recordings of spoken-voice monologues) and near glitchy electronics. The climax of the whole recording, encompassing nearly all genres that have featured so far, comes in "Nur ein Wimpernschlag in der Unendlichkeit" ("Only a Blink of an Eye in the Infinity"), an epic track – epic in sound, not in length - of heavy thundering percussion, manic lead guitar soloing and tortured singing against a background of harsh, bleak ambience.

For such an ambitious recording featuring aspects of different music styles and approaches, "Tape II" is well put together, with music flowing smoothly from one genre into another and the various styles, no matter how conflicting they might appear next to each other on paper, actually coexisting easily. No matter how stupendous the music becomes or how ragged and raging it is, Sebastian B is always in full control of it. Perhaps in parts the music is a bit too controlled and our man might have let it off the leash a little – some ferocious savagery and a suggestion of things threatening to fall apart completely (even though you know that's never going to happen!) might have been welcome. I have to remember though, this album is the work of one musician – the music is so varied and epic at times, you can easily forget that one fellow was actually beavering away writing it all, performing and singing it all, and recording it all. That's an amazing achievement in itself, to do all this and deliver a solid compact result with a clear concept or narrative of expansion and then contraction.