Artist: Gangrened
Album: Deadly Algorithm
Label: Trepanation Recordings, Violence In The Veins, Kohina Records, Odio Sonoro, Burial Records, Domestic System, Noizeland Records and Quebranta Records.
Release Date: 09/04/2021
Country: Finland
We look at Gangrened‘s debut full-length release Deadly Algorithm, which dropped on April 9th on Trepanation Recordings, Violence In The Veins, Kohina Records, Odio Sonoro, Burial Records, Domestic System, Noizeland Records and Quebranta Records.
The band hail from Finland and formed back in 2012. While they have a split and EP to their name, Deadly Algorithm is as mentioned their debut full-length album. The band is Joakim Udd (bass and bass synth), Lassi Männikkö (drums), Jon Imbernon (effects and guitars), Mikko Männistö (effects and vocals). The album was mixed and mastered by Tom Brooke (Oranssi Pazuzu, Hebosagil, Throat) in summer of 2020 at Tonehaven studios close to Jyväskylä in Finland.
If I could only say one thing about the album, it would be that it is a dark and brooding release that fully immerses you in its mire of filth and sorrow. Luckily, I can say as many things as I like and so I’ll add that it has a palpable layer of psyched out, fuzz laden doom and sludge elements present at the forefront of the album. Working in unison, as well as at times in conflict with this are the album’s noise elements, layers of distortion, harsh elements, and additional fuzz and feedback are just some of what the band bring to the table. Then you have dark ambient elements on the album that provide relief from the heaviness and harshness of the release but take the listener to some of the darkest places on the album and really help to develop that enveloping feeling of hopelessness that the album espouses.
The vocals on the album are a distorted and raw shouted style that sits somewhere between the doom/sludge elements on the album and the noise elements, yet almost comes across like hardcore or punk vocals to some extent. The vocals carry a huge range of emotion ranging from anger and rage to pain and anguish, to despair and sorrow. The music shifts and changes to match the tone of the vocals, or maybe it’s the reverse, either way though the two flow in unison throughout the album. As well as these vocals we have faded, distant harsh vocals the echo behind the main vocals throughout the album, giving an unsettling energy to the whole thing.
Instrumentally speaking we have a fantastic blend of styles thrown into the album. From the fuzz laden doom and sludge elements on the album to the experimental synth-based noise elements in the mix, it never gets boring. Some of the most captivating parts on the release are when the instruments die down to be almost atmospheric and nature and the dark ambient parts come to the forefront of the mix. This is when some of the most immersive elements on the album really shine through. Some of the more psych-based parts present us with meandering, experimental guitar with unusual techniques and effects aplenty. The psych elements blend particularly well with the noise rock influences on the album and between the two make for some truly unique soundscapes. Regardless of which style is being championed at any given time, the proficiency of the musicians is consistently solid throughout.
Overall, this album took me completely by surprise. I saw the genre descriptions and the album art and thought, “this is going to be another heavy, fuzzy sludge release.” I am happy to say that I was wrong, this album is so much more than that and took me on a journey that I was not ready for or expecting to take. So, whatever your expectations may be, I say scrap them and go into this with a completely open mind and experience what Deadly Algorithm has to offer, because what they are offering is pretty damn fantastic.
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