If you’re curious about how much a Black Metal band can actually bend the term and the inscribed elements of the genre without losing the grounding, the new TOTAL NEGATION record (out 3/31/13 on Temple of Torturous) should be on your must-hear-list. This is not a self-contained full-length, but the two EPs Zur späten Stunde (“at this late hour”) und Zeiträume (“timeframes”) combined onto one carrier medium – a choice that is totally understandable when you give the eight songs a listen, because atmosphere and song-writing differs quite a lot between the two EPs. Nonetheless both parts are woven into another by the lyrical concept. In a nutshell: Zur späten Stunde deals with the psychic process sleep, whereas Zeiträume refers to the trippy state of mind when dreams and reality start to blur.
The songs of Zur späten Stunde were written years prior to Zeiträume and bridge the gap to TOTAL NEGATION’s previous album Zeitenwende, at least on the musical side of things. Wiedergänger (the individual who is TOTAL NEGATION) made sure that there are also references to his other project NACHTS (check that out here). One thing TOTAL NEGATION fantastically perfected on this EP are the so called tonal feedbacks – guitar feedback is not used as an element of noise, but as a separate instrument, playing these really unlikely melodies, something you really have to hear. Although the arrangements and riffs are quite outstanding, Zur späten Stunde obviously is a Black Metal record. Not exactly raw or super depressive, but bleak, cold and often quite doomy Black Metal, excellently performed.
Stream Zur späten Stunde here:
Zur späten Stunde
The second EP, Zeiträume, is something different. I mean there have been traces of Psychedelica in TOTAL NEGATION‘s music before, and there are a few bands combining somewhat psychedelic music with Black Metal, but what’s going on Zeiträume is beyond everything you’d ever expected a Black Metal artist to come up with. Wiedergänger let his devotion for Kraut Rock totally kick in, the epitome of German rock music created in the late 60ies and 70ies by hugely influential bands like CAN, NEU! or FAUST. This results in four tracks that combine the progressive, psychedelic aspirations of Kraut Rock with the atmosphere and aggression of Black Metal. “Obscure” is a term often used to describe Black Metal, but it never applied better to something than to Zeiträume. Not only do the riffs and the song structures have this Krauty feeling, there is also the heavy use of a melodica and if that wouldn’t be crazy enough, a vibraharp. Thus the music that is created is really arcane, trapping you quite often between pure astonishment and inconvenient unease. As demanding as this might be at some moments, as deeply interesting and exciting it is.
Stream Zeiträume here:
Zeiträume
So if you’re always on the lookout for the strangest, most obscure output Black Metal has to offer, there’s no way around TOTAL NEGATION. This is really a total mind fuck, and one you have to witness yourself.
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