Ultar.

The Lovecraftian horror from Krasnoyarsk.

From Siberia, Ultar is a Post-Black Metal band heavily influenced by the cosmic horror tales created by H. P. Lovecraft (one of my favourite authors). Ultar takes its name from the mystic tale "The Cats of Ultar", they promise to terrorise our dreams with cosmic sounds and catastrophic arrangements. 

They are promoting their debut album entitled "Kadath" an ode to another Lovecraft's  short-novel called "The Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath". 

The record has six songs all f them well composed to create atmospheres around our ears, with long songs that bring tension and mystery, sometimes we can feel angst and tranquillity, depending on the track we choose. "Nyarlathotep" and "Azathoth" are the atmospheric tracks with long sounds and dense ambient influences, i could say they have an Avant-Garde or Drone influence, some clean and calmed guitars take place on them, and drums are heard with a slow beat, waiting to break into madness alongside screams of mercy, then back again to the calmed deeps of darkness. "Shores of the Sleeping Seas", the shortest piece on the record brings more calm to the "sea" of music, maybe the most Post-Rock track we have ever heard, ready to link us to "Xasthur" that opens with drums and fast guitars, again we can hear the voices screaming to us for some blood, then guitars take place to some solos, i can describe the horror most Lovecraftian fan most feel when the book opens right in the middle, cuz this song brings back those references into the music. 

"The Ancient Ones" became my favourite track, it has that sci-fi essence, that spirit of something unknown lurking us, guitars have strong strums and some feedback is heard to create that tension we need to walk through the darkness and face the most imaginable horrors that "At The Mountains Of Madness" have implanted into our heads, finally "Kadath" the longest track on the record and the one that gives name to the record, breaks all tranquillity and destroys every single time to retrieve its place as the song we need to listen, full of drums strumming fast and screams coming from different places, it finishes with a more relaxed but still heavy cosmic  or inter-dimensional feeling, guitars get slower as the song fades, it melts like ice, giving us something beautiful behind all the obscure scenario and the terrific image, because there has to be some beauty inside every beast.

"Kadath" maybe as a full length album can be considered as great production, i give a 9/10, maybe it can take you a time to understand it and feel the ambient mood as something heavy to listen, but it deserves a space on our playlist. 

I will place the links of their social media and bandcamp to follow them. Also i leave reminding you Je suis Le Mexicain. 

https://ultar.bandcamp.com/album/kadath

https://www.facebook.com/Ultarband/

#BlackMteal #RussianBands #Lovecraft #Krasnoyarks 

The Rise And Fall Of Arctic Monkeys.

A Piano Nightmare was my worst Nightmare.

Ok. yes you just saw it, i had to say it... The new Arctic Monkeys album did had the impression i expected. 

Years after their not much liked (By me) "AM" (I  have to admit, i like it more than this new record), but anyhow, i first listened "Tranquillity Base Hotel & Casino" i felt something was not really good at first sight. But let's analyse its cover, i don't truly understand it, somehow it looks like an experimental album, people say not to judge a book by its cover, but c'mon, this record has a  the weirdest cover in the history. 

I recognise the first two tracks have something good, but the rest is just lift music, the piano became the main instrument, it's not bad but i think Turner can improve his piano skills, feels like his just playing like a child with the instrument and left guitar sounds and arrangement for just a third place, drums feel not catchy and... where the hell are the bass lines?

I thought i needed a time to appreciate it with a wider perspective... but i just took "Start Treatment" and "One Point Perspective" as the best tracks on the record, i know the sound of the band changes during the times but... i cannot feel or connect with this style, maybe not yet or not definitely.

Yes i like the challenges and i know Alex Turner and CIA wanted to challenge us to take something different but i really have to remark this is not the album i was expecting, i know they don't care about it, they just sell and sell records over the world, a great new is that... this record is most vinyl selling album in the modern history of music formats, that's great, because no album has done that, maybe we need to look to this physic formats and take them not only as collection but as a way to consume music rather than digital platforms (ironic 'cuz most of Le Mexicain posts have a spotify link)  

Anyway if you're a fan of AM, this record can divide you, it can provoke different reactions, mine was to definitely stop listening to it for a while, others voted to love it, it's good yes, maybe they have a better point of view than ours, but as a fan since 2009 i have to admit i expected more, something like going back to their roots, "AM" disappointed me because of its soft porn style, now i see traces of this kind of mood on "TBH&C", however i thought the Monkeys would take a trip back to their roots like in "Whatever people say i am, that's what i am not" or even go back to modern tunes like those on "Suck it and see", my mistake. 

Enjoy this record, or hate it thought, you have options, we have. I give it a 2/10. 

i leave reminding you... Je suis Le Mexicain. 

#ArcticMonkeys #TranquilityBaseHotel&Casino #Review

Bad Saint.

Get in the car and let's hit the road across the USA.

The Band's logo and social media

Bad Saint is a band from Seattle, Washington, USA. it's fronted by the genius Tess Freedel, a young and independent musician who gives her best on every track she makes.

Tess Freedel

I listened to their debut EP entitled "North American", launched somewhere in 2017 and it really hooked me up, basically because of it's simplicity, fresh and ambitious sound, excellent for those hot, sunny spring days (here in Mexico we have had the most hot spring ever so... you know what i'm talking about).

North American EP

The first track we can listen trough the recording is "Out Of Blood", a catchy song with strong drums and guitars, her voice is so deep and the lyrics so accurate that we can really feel we're running out of blood, maybe because of love or anything else, there's a great guitar solo that you can enjoy and it gives balance to the melodic verse.

"Hanging On The Telephone" is a kind of pop song with some high tunes, specially on the chorus, taking some rest from the fuzz and distortion, reminds me the kind of music i was so into when i turned 21 in the hot spring of 2015.

"Fall City Road" gets stronger, and Tess seems to play with more than just her guitar, she takes our hearts and emotions, i feel a huge influence from the Riot Grrrl movement and so much driven by Bruce Springsteen's legacy, the thing is we can understand she's such a bad saint, she wants to runaway and be free, like a bird, like the summer wind playing with her hair.

"Neon Preaches" became my favourite track on the recording, every chorus has a "Wooohooo" thing so you can sing along with it, rather you prefer to take the verse with that enjoyable guitar breaks with a clean sound.

And the final track "Hard Truth" is the kind of music i would set on a indie movie soundtrack or TV series, i can feel a trace of road trips, friends drinking on the garden or the porch, but maybe it's just Tess singing to herself that there's something we must realise, that some truths are hard to accept, i enjoyed the slow-bluesy guitar and the sweet sweet drums tickling every inch of the song, and then... the chorus becomes strong, like those who dare to accept the truth, a hard truth.

In a few words, i believe this band, Bad Saint and their "North American" portrays the true American dream, the one everyone there in the states need to remember and the one we should see and say "yes, there's still a bit of hope for everyone", also it shows a rebel spirit, a voice that shouts out loud. I give it a 9/10, plus i believe they can deliver to us something more risky and playful, but in summary, this record is worthy of your playlist. 

I will leave the recording down here for your pleasure and follow me to discover more details on it, also i will attach their facebook page so you can follow and like them. I leave, reminding you that music is always the reflect from the souls that matters and goes to the people who truly listens to them and of course... i remind you Je suis Le Mexicain.

The genius behind the Badness

https://www.facebook.com/badsaintband/


#BadSaint #Indie #Alternative #Rock #SeattleSound