HIGH QUALITY SLUDGE DRIPPED IN A HORROR LADEN ATMOSPHERE
Tentacle is a side project of the band members of Ice
Dragon. For those who have been living under a rock, Ice Dragon is a Stoner/Doom
Metal/ Psychedelic Rock band that has gained a cult following over the past few
years because of the bands’ relish for continuous reinventation of self. Ice Dragon believe that the only thing
constant is change and so even when they hit the home run with a successful
formula on a particular release it doesn’t hinder the bands’ idea of pushing
music to the logical extreme on their next release instead of sticking to the
same formula, playing it safe and churning out some quality material in the
same vein as their precursor. This is the reason why no two Ice Dragon releases
sound the same and this love for experimentation backed with an aura of open
mindedness has attracted many a person into the bands’ fan base in a world
where most choose to play it safe and release new stuff that mostly sounds like
a re hash of their older stuff.
That being said, Tentacle was formed in 2012 and they
released their debut EP in the same year entitled ‘Void Abyss’. Early this year
they released their debut album labelled ‘Ingot Eye’ which lasts around 40
minutes and consist of 4 tracks with lengths varying from 5 minutes to 13
minutes long. A mere glance at the name
of the band, and its artwork promptly communicates to the listener the bands’
obsession with the infamous H.P.Lovecraft.
The band plays a mixture of lo-fi yet burdensome and onerous
mix of doom with elements of drone-y sludge metal with the pivotal aim being to
create an atmosphere that is riddled with dirge and bleak hopelessness. As
compared to the debut EP this release has a rawer, heavier and more oppressive
sound. If the previous EP was a taste of the bands’ exploration into the
deepest darkest unknowns this album is a peregrination into the entrails of all
that is murky and filthy. The music moves along at a pace that is neither as
slow as Pilgrim or Reverend Bizarre but not also as mid paced as Alunah or
Subrosa. A good choice, after all it is the slow, heavy plodding riffs that
create a foreboding and morose feeling more successfully than up tempo riffs. The band in a short time seemed to have
mastered the concept of building up an atmosphere using heavy riffs, deep cavernous
bass lines tortured vocals and repetitive drums that engulf the listener in a
hypnotic, trance like and lethargic cocoon.
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| Show me the tentacles !! |
The music in itself at times seems to draw out inspiration from
Black Sabbath’s first 2 LP’s and at times even classical music. This beast of
an album with its horror fuelled imagery and odiously nauseating atmosphere is
sprinkled with hints of psychedelia. Even though the music moves along at a
similar bruised pace throughout there are enough variations in each tracks that
makes sure that the listeners’ attention doesn’t meander elsewhere. Be it the variation in vocals that range from
screamed to at times even clean or the subtle changes in the tempo of the
guitar work or the trudging bass lines backed by the use of a single unwavering
note against the backdrop of surrounding silence, each such change which has
been masterfully placed piles onto the demonic and twisted feel this album
permeates throughout its length. The band has this ability to mesh all that is
mentioned above to create a singular unit of utmost quality and flows together with
impossible liquidity.
The production deserves special mention here. Remember when
Celtic Frost and Hellhammer released their legendary stuff 30-odd years back
and it was the most repulsive and heinous stuff one had had the pleasure to
listen to? How did the band do that? They used the simple concept of downtuning
their guitars and let reverb do the rest. In the simplest of words, that is
what the band has done here. The band
admitted that they had to work hard to get the sound they wanted and it has
ended up paying dividends. In a day when overproduction reigns supreme and
where production has a two dimensional sound – left and right, the band has
gone out of the way to get the old school sound came to you from up, down,
backward, forward and in the process created a multi dimensional listening experience,
a sound which has sadly been long forgotten in the current day and practiced
only by a handful of musicians. If you have listened to Head Of The Demon’s
2013 debut album then you know what I am talking about, for they too possess
that evil reverb laden old school sound.
It is good news that Tentacle is not just an experiment by
Ice Dragon. They are a serious band which is here to stay. Those familiar with
the works of Ice Dragon may at times find some similarities over here but there
are enough variations from the core Ice Dragon sound to call Tentacle a
different band that carries a harsher, more nefarious look into the minds that
are collectively known as Ice Dragon. Get your hands on this album as soon as
you can as this is definitely ‘Best Doom Metal Albums Of The Year’ stuff.
SCORE - 86/100
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