renkls
This is the kind of album where in order to give a completely enlightening review, you're going to have to know some technical terminology to wrap your head around it. The band's only known description of their music is 'Metal in Opposition".
If you're not savvy with terminology or don't often deal with academic assertions in your music, you're on the same ground as me. This is a headtrip of an album, described by several sources as krautmetal, free metal, polystylist metal, extreme metal, along with just plain brain melting. Piqued your interest? It certainly piqued mine - and I will also be among the critics to attest that this kind of experience is certainly not for any but the most open minded.
Structured as a five part, single 78 minute composition, Capture of Ziz immediately lays its thesis on the table, a complex, riff salad, Metal in Opposition: rife with accompanying instruments such as a mandolin, harmonica, violin... if you think that means it's going to sound pretty damn strange, you're right. The main feature of the album is undoubtedly a guitar and drum exercise, with complimenting vocals ranging from guttural raspy death metal-esque ruminations, to off-kilter and psychedelic spoken word. The music foundations are constantly in motion, ranging from forward driven erratic tribal drum beats, to a massive acoustic bridge.
To explain further would do injustice to the surreal kind of experience that Qualeaceans have served up here, apparently the result of four years hard work. I recommend this headtrip only to the most open minded metal music fans, as the massive length, surreal and sprawling nature, as well as krautrock sensibilities, makes it a very niche offering, but decidedly unique, and worth a listen, even if only to experience a very unique, and some would say extreme interpretation of metal.
Listenable in Full on: https://qualeaceans.bandcamp.com/