The Kovenant - SETI
Nuclear Blast, 2003
This is the fourth album of the Norwegian band, whose name is The Kovenant now, but formerly they were known as Covenant. They released two albums under Covenant and with the slightly changes in their name their music also took a new direction. It disappointed many of their long-time fans but it also gathered new listeners around the band. Four years passed since that surprising 'Animatronic' release and they are here again to surprise us or better to say to shock us. If you expected they had turned back to their roots, you are wrong, they are even getting fuuuuuuurther away. I'm never against developement and changing but this time, SETI is beyond my limits. Though I have to admit the change is not so huge they `just` turned a bit too electronical now, losing the pounding strength of their music that gave some heavyness to it. They kept the futuristic, cold, glassy feeling but you can find these characteristics at all the bands that play electronic music. In fact they became more commercial comparing to their last album 'Animatronic'. The metal influence is almost totally gone, except some parts and everything sounds more computerized.
Opener 'Cybertrash' (Would you die for my sins?) is one of the better moments on the album. It stands nearer to 'Animatronic' than the other songs and it's more varied both musically and vocalwise. I really enjoyed their guest operasinger, Eileen`s voice who sounds like a little girls sometimes. I think they were listening to Rammstein a lot when the disc arrives to 'Via Negativa', though this one still belongs to the `closer to Animatronic' group. At 'Star By Star' I thought I might switched to a radio station. If there wasn't that distorted vocal passage with the riffing guitar it could be a new radio hit musically, but with such lyrics it has, would never become too popular: "Star by Star, Corrupting all of humanity, So much alike are we, When I see you I see me". Some of the songs like 'Planet Of The Apes', 'Perfect End' 'Stillborn Universe' are slower or melancholic songs but still too mellow, where only the lyrics are worth the attention.
'Acid Theatre' is the best piece of the album giving the weirdest, most paranoid time while you are listening to SETI. 'Pantomime' has strong metal roots and its slowly flowing drifts your soul out into the cold space and there is no return to normality. These songs together with 'Industrial Twilight' and also 'Cyberthrash', have the extra stuff that could have made The Kovenant unique and special among the electronic bands. These are the weird, lunatic ones that make your brain and imagination work differently and see things that are not there. Especially 'Industrial Twilight' where I had the feeling I was standing at a belt-system in a factory that would rather shoujld be placed in a sci-fi movie, and everybody was moving like robots. It gave a weird dignified feeling but was also depreesing.
The first time I played SETI, I thought I would never listen to it again. But since I was responsible to review it I had to give it a second chance. I admit, with each listening you are getting used to the sound of the album more and more and true, comparing to Animatronic it's more varied. It's excatly the kind of album that if you are listing to a year later, you will form a totally different opinion on it. I warn you: before you put this album on, forget about what this band did before and then you might enjoy it.
I think this verse explains SETI the best:
"Look at me and tell me what you see
I am not what you think I am
Too wierd to live, too rare to die"
Cybertrash
Planet Of The Apes
Star By Star
Via Negativa
Stillborn Universe
Acid Theatre
Perfect End
Neon
Keepers Of The Garden
Pantomime
Hollow Earth
Industrial Twilight
www.gentechranch.tk
Nuclear Blast, 2003
This is the fourth album of the Norwegian band, whose name is The Kovenant now, but formerly they were known as Covenant. They released two albums under Covenant and with the slightly changes in their name their music also took a new direction. It disappointed many of their long-time fans but it also gathered new listeners around the band. Four years passed since that surprising 'Animatronic' release and they are here again to surprise us or better to say to shock us. If you expected they had turned back to their roots, you are wrong, they are even getting fuuuuuuurther away. I'm never against developement and changing but this time, SETI is beyond my limits. Though I have to admit the change is not so huge they `just` turned a bit too electronical now, losing the pounding strength of their music that gave some heavyness to it. They kept the futuristic, cold, glassy feeling but you can find these characteristics at all the bands that play electronic music. In fact they became more commercial comparing to their last album 'Animatronic'. The metal influence is almost totally gone, except some parts and everything sounds more computerized.
Opener 'Cybertrash' (Would you die for my sins?) is one of the better moments on the album. It stands nearer to 'Animatronic' than the other songs and it's more varied both musically and vocalwise. I really enjoyed their guest operasinger, Eileen`s voice who sounds like a little girls sometimes. I think they were listening to Rammstein a lot when the disc arrives to 'Via Negativa', though this one still belongs to the `closer to Animatronic' group. At 'Star By Star' I thought I might switched to a radio station. If there wasn't that distorted vocal passage with the riffing guitar it could be a new radio hit musically, but with such lyrics it has, would never become too popular: "Star by Star, Corrupting all of humanity, So much alike are we, When I see you I see me". Some of the songs like 'Planet Of The Apes', 'Perfect End' 'Stillborn Universe' are slower or melancholic songs but still too mellow, where only the lyrics are worth the attention.
'Acid Theatre' is the best piece of the album giving the weirdest, most paranoid time while you are listening to SETI. 'Pantomime' has strong metal roots and its slowly flowing drifts your soul out into the cold space and there is no return to normality. These songs together with 'Industrial Twilight' and also 'Cyberthrash', have the extra stuff that could have made The Kovenant unique and special among the electronic bands. These are the weird, lunatic ones that make your brain and imagination work differently and see things that are not there. Especially 'Industrial Twilight' where I had the feeling I was standing at a belt-system in a factory that would rather shoujld be placed in a sci-fi movie, and everybody was moving like robots. It gave a weird dignified feeling but was also depreesing.
The first time I played SETI, I thought I would never listen to it again. But since I was responsible to review it I had to give it a second chance. I admit, with each listening you are getting used to the sound of the album more and more and true, comparing to Animatronic it's more varied. It's excatly the kind of album that if you are listing to a year later, you will form a totally different opinion on it. I warn you: before you put this album on, forget about what this band did before and then you might enjoy it.
I think this verse explains SETI the best:
"Look at me and tell me what you see
I am not what you think I am
Too wierd to live, too rare to die"
Cybertrash
Planet Of The Apes
Star By Star
Via Negativa
Stillborn Universe
Acid Theatre
Perfect End
Neon
Keepers Of The Garden
Pantomime
Hollow Earth
Industrial Twilight
www.gentechranch.tk
