UnterART - Memento
The album includes two pieces already known as they had been pre-released, namely „Der Morgen and „Exit”, three part „Novalis” being an instrumental passage of changeable atmosphere and yet set in electro&industrial with a stronger swing in either a former or a latter way.
„Now or Never” opens very dynamically and features all the elements necessary to become a first rate hit. It comprises of fine electronic beat, devilish vocal and fast, stable melodic pace.
„Open end” is set in a similar convention – moderately fast electronic pace and a bit nasal harsh vocal of Chris Harms; sonic skips, transition of a steady melodic line and sudden stops kelp to avoid the redundant monotony.
Triptych „Novalis” consists of three pieces that appear on the album in regular intervals.
„Novalis Part I (Der Morgen)” is a great, dance floor hit with hard rhythm, hard beat and samples, brilliant speed and strongly marked electronic background.
„Novalis Part II (Ewig)” has a similar structure, but sounds a bit more slow; still it's more tensed: reverberations, samples and flood of electronic sounds give it the best dynamic potential possible.
„Novalis Part III (Keine Götter)” speeds up again and the regular, repeating sequences stand for a perfect base for wild, uncontrolled sounds to run wild. The fragments dissolve in pounding echoes on the wave of quiting and again hitting wave forming a dancy treat.
„The Antagonist” and „Perfect World” are tracks most reminding Proceed, Orange Sector and Spetsnaz in sound as they mark the regular beat and reciting-like vocal.
„Exit” is very harsh both as far as vocal and melodic line are concerned.
„Pariah” included industrial echoes and also slower, fluently running melodies interrupted by irregular beat and completed by hoarse, deep vocal which sounds a bit like a whisper, a bit lie this specific way of singing „from under the fringe” when the artist is singing bended and looks at the audience askance. Add great music to it and you get a hit guaranteed.
The title track „Memento” sounds like a ballad in industrial rhythm – nasal vocal of Harms and love incantation „ I cut my name in your heart”.
The final track „Atrophied” finishes in a nostalgic and melancholic way; the vocal sounds in such a way that if you have the associations with Vile Valo of HIM I won't be surprised. It's a rather gloomy soundscape: reverberations, guitars, one single beat plus a bit of electronic background stand for a bit dreamy piece. The album seems to be fading away, disappearing slowly, dying out- that's how the artists decided to close their album.
All in all the album characterizes with a rather stable pace, the vocal, which sounds gently sometimes can quite unexpectedly change into harsh, devilish one (mostly while refrains).
Dynamism, catchy melodies and at the same time a tone of melancholy and dramatic effect – that's how I see the atmosphere of „Memento”.
The only what I could criticize here is a lack of one distinct accent that would extinguish, kinda specify the character of the release. Aside from that UnterArt sound very well and definitely follow once chosen music path, however, if they swerved of it once in a while, the whole would sound much better.
