PORTAL — The Sweyy (review)

PORTAL — The Sweyy album cover EP · 2004 · Technical Death Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
UMUR
"The Sweyy" is an EP release by Australian death metal act Portal. The EP was released through Blacktalon Media in July 2004. It bridges the gap between the band´s debut- and sophomore full-length studio albums "Seepia" (November 2003) and "Outre'" (September 2007). "The Sweyy" consists of 3 studio tracks and 2 live tracks (recorded at the Bloodlust II Festival in 2003). Both live tracks were featured in their studio versions on "Seepia". The 3 studio tracks were also released on a split with Rites of Thy Degringolade the same year. Otherwise the material is exclusive to this EP release, and doesn´t appear on the two full-length releases surrounding the EP.

Stylistically Portal continue to play their cacophonous, dissonant, murky, and almost avant-garde death metal style and "The Sweyy" is a natural successor to "Seepia". The sound production is maybe a little more clear than the case was on the preceding album, but since it´s Portal we´re talking about, you should of course not expect anything clean or sterile sounding. This is still murky, brutal, raw, and filthy death metal, which is both unusual in structure, and anarchistic in the way it´s performed. Think how Incantation would sound if they were put through an avant-garde grinder and played even more raw and extreme death metal than they already do. Both the opening title track and "Werships" sound like that, but "Doors" is an experimental noise/sound effect track. An eerie atmospheric instrumental track which could well be used as a horror movie soundtrack. The two live tracks are lo-fi recorded and they are so murky and raw that you´re not really able to hear what´s going on. Not a great way to end the EP.

"The Sweyy" is both a hard and a harsh listen and like everything Portal have ever done it´ll make some people confused and terrified, while others will devour the foulness, the chaos, and the adventurous progressive nature of the music. The two new original studio tracks are great, "Doors" is dragging and lasts too long, while the two live tracks feature a sub par live recording quality, so the EP is actually a bit hard to rate, but a 3 star (60%) rating isn´t all wrong.
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