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Unexpect: Fables of the sleepless empire

04/07/11 || Altmer

You’ve never heard of this band called Unexpect (also stylized as UneXpect, unexpecT, etc etc etc)? Shame on you. You obviously do not like forward-thinking music. Ok, you can be forgiven, they’re not as famous as they should be. But still. If you don’t know, you should probably rectify that and get onto listening “In a Flesh Aquarium”, their 2006 masterpiece. And when you’re done, come back and read this review from beginning to end and then buy this album too.

Now, Unexpect, on its previous albums was a entity all unto its own. If you can describe Unexpect’s sound, you’re either an extraterrestrial genius or they did something wrong. The one thing that’s constant about Unexpect is that it’s not constant. They have the ability to genre-shift bizarrely from… well, anything into everything, bonded together by metal riffing and growls. That forms the backbone, along with Leilindel’s clean vocals (chick vox, if you’re wondering – no, it doesn’t sound like Nightwish. Get the fuck out of here). I’ve seen them incorporate jazz, electronica, folk, polka, circus music, classical, and pretty much everything you can think of. The exception being nigga rap and a gospel choir. It makes it hard to say what’s going on, since they ALSO possess the Dream Theater Magic Ability to Switch Time Signatures About Every Minute. You know, just segue into parts that sound totally disparate and weird together, and then manage to not make it jarring. Basically, it’s a rollercoaster ride through everything.

So be warned. This album, whatever you think of it, is not easy listening. It’s not going to be spun just once and then you’ll know what it’s about. It’s got none of that. It’s a progressive album in that sense that there’s always something new to discover. There’s a lot of shit on here that has not been done before to these kind of extents. You need to devote some time to it. That’s the kind of record you’re dealing with. If you, like me, are into that kind of music, you’ll find it a great, exhilarating ride.

Here’s why: songwriting. When you’re dealing with the amount of schizoid music and lyrics these Canadians come up with (another reason to have a soft spot for them), you need to be able to meld all the parts into one. Unexpect can do this – they make all the weird transitions and genre-hopping seem like it’s a walk in the park. Take a listen to “Orange Vigilantes” and see how something approaching a jazz section suddenly develops into a Dream Theater meets Dillinger Escape Plan approach with violins over the top, and then switches effortlessly back. That’s how you do it.

The album is basically eleven songs made up of those exercises. And they’ve still managed to make everything listenable. That’s an achievement on its own. 60 minutes of listenable insanity – that’s what Unexpect is all about. The only downside with this album is that there are no parts where a riff really stands out – all of it is amazing and cool, but none of it crosses over into crown jewel territory. In fact, despite the high quality level overall, there’s only one Unexpect moment I particularly remember being like that – a riff towards the end of “Desert Urbania” on the previous album. But don’t let that stop you – you will likely find something to love here. In fact, with all of these songs, there’s always amazing things going on. It’s an art to keep the listener interested during this time – they manage it.

Then there’s the lyrics, which I can’t go into because nobody knows what they’re about. But if you’re dealing with a band where the orange pumpkins rise and you have mecha-phoenixes and dancing dead people, you know it’s out there. It’s just weird. But it’s very cool to read just for the sheer “qu’est-ce qui se passe” moments.

This album, in conclusion, is another high quality Unexpect release. It doesn’t top its predecessor in terms of sheer insanity or songwriting quality (in fact this album seems even a bit restrained by their standards) but it’s still a unique band doing what they do best, which is bringing insanity to the masses. And because they have that, they’re elevated above the rest of the metal flock like a giant tower in the desert.

A note: if you want to purchase this album, it’s not going to be in stores. You have to order it from their store or download the mp3/lossless files for a name-your-price starting at $8.99 (Canadian dollars). Head to their website (linked below) to do just that.

Recommendation: Mechanize the orange pumpkins, set them aflight on a condor, and let the mountains crash into the flying army of red-and-white candles bearing jack-o-lanterns. Or something. It is Unexpect after all.

8,5

Information
Released: 2011
Label: self-released
Website: www.unexpect.com
Band
Leilindel: vocals
Artagoth: guitars, vocals
SyriaK: guitars, vocals
ChaotH: 9 stringed bass
Exod: keyboards, sampling
Barboen: violins
Landryx: drums

Tracklist
01. Unsolved Ideas of a Distorted Guest
02. Words
03. Orange Vigilantes
04. Mechanical Phoenix
05. The Quantum Symphony
06. Unfed Pendulum
07. In The Mind of the Last Whale
08. Silence This Parasite
09. A Fading Stance
10. When the Joyful Dead Are Dancing
11. Until Yet a Few More Deaths Do Us Part

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