Devanic – Mask Installed
Self-released – 2004
By Jason Jordan
Monologue Directed to a Fan &
Review in Continual Alternation
Monologue: “If you don’t quit blowing shit around, I’m gonna turn you off. I’m fucking serious!”
Review: Er, hello. Sorry about that. My ceiling fan was pissing me off. You know how it is. Anyway, I guess I’m supposed to write something about
Devanic in the space I’ve been provided. I will say that this quintet works fast…like uber-fast, or ultra-fast, or mondo-fast. Just to give you an idea, they formed in 2004 and do you know when their promo came out?
Monologue: “Quit, you fucker!” * picks a piece of paper off of the floor *
Review: Yes, their self-released debut came out in 2004 as well, and is a carrier of the melodeath gene.
Mask Installed is Austrian melodic death metal that has more in common with
In Flames and
Soilwork than perhaps anyone else in the subgenre. While the band is guilty of emulation – to a certain degree – they do excel in some senses, but definitely aren’t going to be referred to as juggernauts this early in their career.
Monologue: “I will turn you off. I promise you that. It’s just that I’m too hot if you’re not on, but I’m too cold if you
are on. Just leave the stuff on my desk alone, please?”
Review: I’ll tell you some things about
Mask Installed now. “You Will See,” the opening number, sounds incredibly similar to a song penned by
Haste the Day. But, mostly, it is both feasible and reasonable to relegate
Devanic to the Talented-but-Too-Unoriginal-to-be-Consequential category at this point. However, I like the acoustic interlude in “You Will See”; I like the Egyptian vibe present in “I Am” (someone call
Nile and inform them of the infringement); I like how the closer and title track “Mask Installed” is heavier than any of its predecessors, and how it renewed my interest overall. So, yeah,
Mask Installed – thirty-minutes when tallied – seemingly endorses the “last but not least” cliché, if “Mask Installed” is factored into the equation.
Monologue: “Okay. Fuck this and fuck you!” * turns ceiling fan off *
Review: I am pleased at just how proficient these lads are, considering that they’ve only existed for the better part of a year. I don’t know if they’re ready to be signed quite yet, but having
Mask Installed to their name certainly won’t harm them in any way, shape, or form. If anything, it’s a good way to drum up interest in their material. And now you’ve heard of them, right?
Monologue: “How do you like that, huh? You’re not spinnin’ so fast now, are ya? Bastard.”
7/10
UltimateMetal’s Unsigned Spotlight with Devanic
Official Devanic Website
