Well there’s a good few volcanoes in the Spanish region, so perhaps if someone were foolish enough to construct a graveyard directly in one of their paths it could be liquefied. Still, the last eruption I can find at a glance was in 1909 so perhaps not. When you’ve got ex-members from bands as diverse and Cancer and Mourning Beloveth working together you know to expect a real melting pot of styles and influence. Now, this is often one of my criticisms with the acts on this label, who sometimes employ a hodgepodge of styles without fusing them together very well but this isn’t the case at all with Liquid Graveyard and I find myself pleasantly intrigued by this release.
‘Rumours are like Machine Guns’ instantly fires with both barrels and brings us in with a full-on aggressive attack that on first listen is rather deceptive and for 10 seconds, which isn’t bad when you think about it, I half expect this to unravel into a death metal by numbers affair that I’d usually pawn off onto one of our more grunt-friendly staffers. After a few more listens I realise actually this works and I rather like the way Raquel’s vocals elevate from low growls to the clean tones on the chorus, which gradually climb up to a soprano register. There’s an underlying progressiveness to the music which teeters on the avant-garde and there’s certainly a dramatic feel to ‘From The Tower.’ I love the contrast of dark, sweeping menace created by the deathly guitars, and the bright allure of Raquel’s vocals which soothe as her male counterpart threatens. This number in particular has a doomy hypnotising feel to it, which isn’t so far fetched with Adrian Butler on the bass.
I’ve already commented on the vocals, but it has to be said that this front-lady really does have a good range on her and her clean vocals have a beguiling quality to them, while she is equally skilled in the growling department. With the exception of ‘From The Tower’ she manages to both play beauty and the beast all on her own. ‘On Evil Days’ is a fine example of this with crude, vomit-spewing vocal lines that kind of has me wondering if she has been possessed. This fits really well with the crushing guitars and overbearing wall of sound produced on this track. This one crawls sluggishly creating an atmosphere that is sinister and intense, and eventually drops into some mellow Spanish guitar playing that gives a warm radiance.
‘Them Greeds’ really stands out with its crunching guitars and a memorable melody while there’s an underlying groove that has me drawing a Type O comparison. Lyrically I can only guess that there is a political agenda at play, especially with the likes of this along with ‘Criministers;’ “Spreading venom in the name of progress…trading weapons in the name of fear.” ‘The Blood Inside’ returns to the histrionics of the tower, with some maddened spoken yells. Quick and memorable isn’t the aim of the game here, and while there are some great melodies that stick in my head, it has taken a good ten listens or so to really get into it fully. There’s definitely room for improvement and I’m sure maybe 3 or 4 albums down the line they will make something truly spectacular, but in the meantime this is a debut album well worth your attention.
http://www.myspace.com/liquidgraveyard
