I believe "Skullcarver" is the debut (self-released) three-song demo/EP from Belgian act Dran Dran, and they've got a pretty sick blend of "metalcore" styles happening here: From the super intense, death metal-infused churn of Belgium's classic H8000 scene, to a more chaotically arranged and modern approach. However, the tracks run from less than three minutes to more than seven, so... they're sort of all over the place (in a good way), and other influences do present themselves throughout. In addition to the more expected fare—chugging power chords, rapid bursts of tremolo picking, absolutely vicious screams—you'll find occasionally melodic bass accents, somewhat sludgy dirges, and the quirky riffing/warped bends of closer "Fract. and Fiction" (to cite but a few examples). The recording's dense as hell, too, with an absolutely massive bass tone forcing itself to be heard right alongside the meaty rhythms of the guitars. It's a fairly powerful effort overall, and apparently the CD's packaged in a 7"-sized insert to better represent the pretty damn cool artwork (as well as the somewhat abstract lyrics). I'm only posting a clip since there are just three songs in all, so here's a quick hint at what the band has to offer:
Dran Dran "Fract. and Fiction" (excerpt)
It seems like these guys have some cool ideas, so I'll be interested to hear more. If you like what you hear, contact the band via the MySpace link above, or send 'em an email to get concrete ordering details.
Comments
Interesting music. No comment. People are strange. :)
4.2.2010 | By Carlos
=I mean no comments. :)
4.5.2010 | By Carlos
AHH! Damn you Andrew! (Shakes fist) You cut the clip off RIGHT when I began to get interested in the material. I agree with Carlos that it is interesting, however, I wasn’t thoroughly impressed with the music…UNTIL it hit the 2:13 mark WHEN IT STARTED TO FADE OUT! haha. It’s all good though, cuz now I’ll definitely be checking them out….or maybe that was your intention all along. (Cue dramatic music)
4.9.2010 | By Adrianoso