!T.O.O.H.! - Pod vládou biče
2003 / Avant-garde death metal
1. Čistka
2. Šlapeto
3. My zřeli v čiré kontemplaci
4. Bezcenné Se Rodí A Cenné Mizí
5. Aura & Ziata
6. Pod vládou biče
7. Svatořečím
8. Vocut - Pocut
9. Já Je Proto Proti
Orostider: Recalling where I first found !T.O.O.H.! seems to be impossible. I know it was couple of years ago and that I was immediately charmed. It isn't a secret that I enjoy weird-ish and unorthodox music, but I certainly don't like any artist just due to them being different. The obscurity has to be done in good taste. !T.O.O.H.!, and especially this magnificent slab called 'Pod Vládou Biče', succeed in creating completely unique soundscapes.
'Pod Vládou Biče' is one of the less straight-forward albums of !T.O.O.H.! and is certainly my personal favourite. Some people could complain about its production or how the songwriting seems to be reckless. The production question is entirely dependent on an individual. I personally love when 'the snare goes ping' and the minor muddiness of the production just fits the overall mood of the album. This isn't your everyday album with flawless production and easy structures. Even if the album may sound senseless to some, it is audible that the transitions are well thought. !T.O.O.H.!'s style also requires quite a noticeable amount of skill to perform in such a vicious and precise way.
The album has elements from what I assume to be Czech traditional music to black metal, death metal and grindcore. The album is also quite melodic in a way, but the melodies itself are quite chaotic and obscure. I am not able to describe how !T.O.O.H.! sounds even by using several different bands as examples so it should be quite obvious that they've managed to create a rather unique sound for themselves. 'Pod Vládou Biče' is one of the best avant-garde albums in metal music and it shouldn't be disregarded due to people avoiding more difficult albums.
If any sort of obscure music is your deal, this is the shit.
Favourite songs: 'Slapeto', 'My Zřeli V čiré Kontemplaci', 'Aura & Ziata'
tp5170: I like progressive elements in my music to some degree, but if those exceed a certain limit and the music just becomes an over complicated mess it just starts to annoy me if anything. I have no love for that kind of thing and that's why I care for only a few bands that go all out with the progressiveness / technicality.
So to say the least I was a bit worried after hearing some things about the band beforehand that 'Pod Vládou Biče' would fall victim to this - and opening tracks of it in my opinion kind of does, but its style takes clearly a turn for the better after the beginning and calms down a bit. It still sounds complex and weird and all, but in a good way and it doesn't go overboard with that stuff. To be honest I was able to get more out of this than many traditional DM albums I have heard.
If progressive or avantgarde DM with whacky song structures sound appealing at all or you are like me and have wished that someone would take the old DM formulae and do something actually interesting with it then this album is probably for you.
Favourite track: "My Zřeli V čiré Kontemplaci"
So to say the least I was a bit worried after hearing some things about the band beforehand that 'Pod Vládou Biče' would fall victim to this - and opening tracks of it in my opinion kind of does, but its style takes clearly a turn for the better after the beginning and calms down a bit. It still sounds complex and weird and all, but in a good way and it doesn't go overboard with that stuff. To be honest I was able to get more out of this than many traditional DM albums I have heard.
If progressive or avantgarde DM with whacky song structures sound appealing at all or you are like me and have wished that someone would take the old DM formulae and do something actually interesting with it then this album is probably for you.
Favourite track: "My Zřeli V čiré Kontemplaci"
btcarey:
As
you can see from album cover of “Pod Vládou Biče” there is A LOT of stuff going
on, which can also be said for their music. At first glace the album seems a
bit overwhelming and messy. Admittedly, it gets a bit better after a few spins,
but not enough so that I would listen to it on my free time. While there are
some aspects that I think are done well, the overall composure of the album is too
chaotic for my taste.
One of the things that stood out to me was the guitar’s tone.
It has a really bouncy feel to it, kind of like playing the neck pickup through
a high gain channel. Even though it sounds strange at first, it has this fat,
messy sound that really compliments the play style. This paired with the shrill
sporadic leads sounds a bit funny, but really fits. There is no doubt that
while strange; the band has a specific image for their music that is executed
perfectly.
I’ll also just mention that vocals are well done and I love
the cackles the vocalist lets out during “Čistka”. They sound positively horrifying.
Favorite Track: “Šlapeto”
