Agrimonia

今年2009年の海外のベスト・バンドはこの Agrimonia。ドイツの Skuld Releases からリリースされた "s/t" LP (本作はデビュー作となる "s/t" CD-R のヴィニール化であった) は本当によく聞いた。2005年初めに、スウェーデンはイェーテボリ (Göteborg) で結成されたこのバンドには、Martyrdöd、Acursed、Dödsdömd、Atomvinter らのメンバーが在籍している。しかしそれらのバンドとはまったく異質のサウンドを構築している。かれらには、「Blackened Doom-Crustcore」という名称がピッタリだ。なんとなく想像できるとおり、デス/ブラックメタルの影響下にあるドゥーム＝クラストと言っていいが、そのような形容以上の表現力をかねそなえている。とりあえずパンク/ハードコア系統のバンドを例にとれば、Counterblast、あるいは Damad、Karst、Kylesa、あるいはお決まりのような気もするが Neurosis あたりに反応するパンクスはぜひ聞いてみてほしいと思う。これらのバンドともまた異質だが。そのうち Acclaim Distribution にも入荷させたいな。来年2010年にふたたび Skuld Releases からニュー・アルバムをリリースするとのこと。

AGRIMONIA - s/t LP (Skuld Releases)

" Their "demo" cd hit me by surprise and I really couldn't refuse to put this out! These folks come from Gothenburg in lovely Sweden and deliver the goods! The demo (minus 1 song though) that you'll find on this black piece of vinyl hold 4 times thundering death and black metal soaked doom, with hints of crust, as well as atmospheric and epic darkness. The guitars range from devastating heaviness to gloomy acoustic sections, with piercing leads that flash through the darkness every now and then. If you've ever wanted to know exactly how your favourite metal, crust, and doom bands would have sounded like if they were one band this is where you should turn. I won't namedrop anything, just ask you to take me on my word that you really need to check this out if you've been even the slightest intrigued with what's written above. Even though I could drop many influential names, as well as list several of your favourite Swedish crustcore bands in the "members of" department. First 1100 copies comes in a nicely done gatefold." - Skuld Releases

AGRIMONIA - s/t CD (IJC/Detesta Records)

" This slab of darker-than-dark Swedish hardcore starts off with a haunting, atmospheric intro that sounds like what you would hear after nuclear winter has set in. Once the rest of the band kicks in, we’re treated to some intensely gloomy symphonic horror in the vein of MALACHI or FALL OF EFRAFA. The doom doesn’t stop with the music, either. The lyrics are just as dark, but poetic and offer little hope for humanity. If you like your hardcore short and sweet, you’ll be in for a disappointment – the shortest track on the CD is nine minutes long. In all, there are 5 tracks spanning 50-plus minutes of gloom. However the songs are so well-crafted that it doesn’t feel like the songs are as long as they are. This isn’t just a neo-crust album, this is art. (DI) " - Profane Existence

1. The Unknown Bury Me
2. The Decay
3. Scars Make Life
4. Leaves Fall Rotten
5. The Plague

Agrimonia: www.myspace.com/agrimonia

*The band photo was taken from their myspace.