DEADLANDS

Madder Mortem are one of the most original bands of the Norway-background. Differently from the black-satan neighbours which spread in Norway, and differently from the plain romantic-gothic-dark metal (first Theatre of Tragedy, e.g.) they reach a personal formula which is very hard to define. Their sound is raw and brutal, singer's voice is far from the fairy-soprano's standards, but it's ungraceful and violent. The most intriguing side of their sound is the songwriting: fragmented structures, jumping from melodic to chaotic riffs and refrains, and a composition which remains cleverly between the short-heavy attack of the 3 mins and the (often) boring suites of more-than-10-minutes. Small pieces of epics.

Deadlands is all of this, with a feature which makes it a little masterpiece. The global sound and feeling, yet various, is one of the most desperate but well-polished illustration of what the title means: a land of waste, of hopelessness, of dying. The sadness and the cruelty of this sadness are perfectly put in very different songs: the heavy and direct assault of the opening-track; the furious rampaging race of Omnivore; the sad and slow marching of Faceless, the epic sweet and romantic of the last song.

This record is like the beautiful poem sung by an ugly and graceless princess: raw sounds and furious song-structures turn into beautiful gems. The center-piece of this is Silverspine, a long song lead by a heavy pulse which reaches its top of tension at the final screamings thrown on a simple and resolute riff.

The listening is not easy - it took me several times to enter in this unpleasant realm of twisted beauty. But you may find there rare treasures. The results are worth the patience, effort and curiosity.