This is another band from Sweden,it seems every review i am doing at the moment is a Swedish band.You can't complain though when bands like Switchblade are just so good.I will put it this way,if you have been listening to bands like "Khanate" for so long you have become immune to the heaviness then you must check out this band.The band has been flying under the radar for most people for years so it might be surprising to know that this is their fifth album and best but strangely self-titled album.This is one real ugly sounding album,bleak and often painful to the senses but so heavy at times its in danger of being crushed by its own sonic weight.Its not a album that you need to highlight certain tracks,it is better appreciated to be judge as a whole body of work.There is only three tracks on here taking up the best part of a hour and its a body of work that is bleak,dark and extremely abstract.Obvious comparisons will point to Khanate and Earth but really this band can stand out on their own.I don't think any other band can touch them at the moment for avant-doom.Musically the band can move from ambient moments with whispering vocals to massive,bludgeoning sections with some frenzied shrieking vocals.The guitar and bass is thick and buzzing while the drumming is hammering but with a real feel for making the tracks even more dramatic.This is a band that understands the dynamics needed to make some rather uncomfortable doom-noise while still retaining enough arrangement skills to keep it interesting.
This record is a beast that makes no excuses for being absolutely monolithic and intense,this band plays from the gut.There is some insane vocal work to compliment the harrowing guitar work and the production is right up to the challenge.If you like music that builds to massive peaks and then takes you down to dark ambiance only to bring you up to harrowing heights once again then check this out.I can't see how this band can follow this album,its a monster and one of the most intense doom albums ever made.Don't expect many if any traditional doom metal riffs or heavy metal style vocal techniques here,this is for the hardcore doom/sludge fan that can appreciate the abstract doom approach.Best listened to by yourself in a dark room,cranked to 10 but don't expect to get too cozy in your chair because this is one punishing album. 9.5/10
www.myspace.com/switchblade
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