UMUR
"Celestial Mechanics" is the debut full-length studio album by Finnish goregrind/death´n´roll act Pakeni. The album was released through Napalm Records America in 1999. It´s the successor to the 1996 "Detergent Bubble Bath" EP. Unfortunately "Celestial Mechanics" would be the band´s sole full-length album in their original run. Pakeni formed in 1992 and released two demos, an EP, and this album before disbanding.
Stylistically the material on "Celestial Mechanics" is a dark and energetic death´n´roll style. Pakeni included Carcass influenced goregrind elements on their early releases, but those influences are more or less gone on "Celestial Mechanics" and only the band´s death´n´roll influences remain. Pakeni are an incredibly well playing, tight, organic, and groove oriented band, and they deliver their death´n´roll with a great charm and gleam in the eye, but personally I miss the unique combination of Carcass influenced goregrind and stoner metal/death´n´roll, which was featured on the two preceding releases. That combination and the odd sonic experiments that the band also incorporated on those releases, are what made Pakeni unique, and it´s hard not to feel that "Celestial Mechanics" in comparison is a slightly more generic release (sounding a little like a more adventurous Furbowl).
"Celestial Mechanics" is well produced feauturing a warm, heavy, and organic sounding production, which suits the organic nature of the material well. Upon conclusion "Celestial Mechanics" is a good quality death´n´roll album by Pakeni, but it´s not at all what I had hoped for coming to the album after listening to "Virgin's Delirium" (1993) and "Detergent Bubble Bath" (1996), which are both very unique and unusual releases. Still a 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.