Acrid Plains

I often find myself in a confused state and is it any wonder when I cannot read even the simplest things like genre descriptions? Upon hearing Saros, I remember believing this was going to be an all-out black metal affair with little left to the imagination. For some reason, unbeknownst to me, I had prepared myself for a typical black metal outing. I assume it must have been something I had read somewhere about the band. Perhaps it’s the fact that they’re signed to prolific black metal record label Profound Lore? Some sort of description that gave me the wrong impression somewhere along the line because Saros are anything but your average black metal band. According to the less than convincing genre description, this multi-functional American band are “blackened progressive death/thrash metal”. A nice mesh of genre’s we have here. Typically, I’m not the biggest fan of half the genre’s mentioned in the description. Death metal has always been too visceral for me and thrash attached to an image of 80’s cheese. I am a self-confessed music snob, an elitist if you will. I don’t try to hide from the fact that I flat out refuse to listen to the majority of olden day bands in any genre and that I harshly neglect death and thrash metal.

Having said that, in my younger days, I did give death metal a chance to impress me and it rarely ever has. People say you have to sift through a lot of garbage to find the greatest black metal gems and whilst that is true, to an extent, I find it easier to find black metal gems than I do death metal bands I can simply listen to from time-to-time. Though it is true I have more time for all things black metal, I have persisted with death metal, although rather labouredly in recent times, despite the fact that I find the genre less than convincing at being able to provide me with ripe fruits, as opposed to rotten, mould infested one’s. As ‘Acrid Plains’, the self-titled song, smothered me in lush acoustics and cleanly distorted guitar effects, I knew what I had in store wasn’t what I had perceived in the beginning. There are numerous striking elements about this debut that I had not foreseen and am pleasantly surprised by, but there is a feeling that the band haven’t, as of yet, hit their stride.

In my rather limited experience, the death/thrash hybrid is usually a soaring brand of music, littered with fast solos, one after another and death defying dynamism that operates ever presently, even at the expense of other areas. Whatever it takes, hybrids of this nature are always looking to plug the next solo, or innovative move that will increase their own individuality. To an extent, I do not find that Saros do this. Each song is home to a vast array of techniques, each different from the next and the record even contains a number of sweet solos that soar above the darkened skies but, unlike most other bands I have encountered in similar fields, Saros rarely shift out of second or third gear. The tempo changes don’t occur often and, although expected, Saros never deliver a blistering pace that normally comes attached to bands like this at the very beginning. Musicians within these spectrums are usually intent on showcasing how fast they can play, or how their technical abilities are greater than that of their colleagues, but Saros don’t ever seem to be willing to examine their own abilities by playing at a faster speed. However, I do not consider this a negative.

The structures merely confuse me, more so than anything given my expectations. There are obvious drawbacks to playing slower within sub-genres where fans expect and require fast services but this is definitely a positive for me. As a fan of repetitive black metal, where the soundscapes are easy to digest given the simplicity and repetitive structures, fast songs usually seem overblown and most of the small details are lost within the haze of the tempos. Considering Saros play mostly at mid pace, there are no problematic areas when it comes to blistering speeds that deter from the soundscapes. Each song is delivered along the same lines with similar structures, though the content itself obviously deviates along the way, so, as with the repetitive music I love so much, the instrumental elements are easily digested given the slower pace and more manageable scopes. Though the production may seem a little flat, it does allow each aspect to exist audibly and thus function with greater potential, though not to the maximum ability. The guitars, despite the solos, are one of the weakest aspects of the record, rather surprisingly.

In comparisons to the dual clean/harsh vocals that occurs on songs like ‘As The Tyrant Falls III’, the aspiring acoustics and multi-dimensional combinational style between the aforementioned aspects and the bass, for instance, the guitars seem sub standard when they’re not cleanly delivering effects much in the same style that keyboards would do. The soundscapes are tight when the dynamism takes control, but when the average nature of the distorted guitars lone comes into the foreground, the songs loose their way. As well as this minor gripe, I think the harsh vocals - whether they’re growled, screamed or rasped - could have been better. Until recently, I had always assumed the harsh vocals were provided by a male vocalist. They’re not. The vocalist is a woman, who also contributes on guitar. Generally, female performances are highlighted within metal bands because they’re not as wide spread, or frequent. However, I haven’t seen much written about Leila’s performance. I’d be interested to see what people make of her harsher vocals. Personally, I think they’re average. They fit the band well enough, but on a wider scale, they’re not the best. Her voice is perfectly suited to the soundscapes when clean, offering a lot more emotion in her hollow and esoteric manner. I only consider these aspect minor flaws however and am generally pleased with the unusual debut. ‘Coriolis’ is the highlight.