White Ward : "Futility Report"

This band from the Ukraine uses a wide range of atmospheric touches to delve darkly into their songs. They do this using samples , electronics and even sax. There is more jazz present on the first song than their is black metal so these guys are hard to define. They do blast into a double bass driven section with coarse growls. There is a more blackened straight forward onslaught of metal on "Stillborn Knowledge". It does ebb back down into that jazzy place. I found myself looking forward to these moments as the metal sections were much less novel. The sax lines over the swells of distorted chords is the one thing that gives their metal moments a trait that sets them aside from the hundreds of other bands who do this. There are some shimmering post rock parts and shredding guitar sections so a range to touch upon the taste buds of many a metal head.

"Homecoming" starts with a more jazz like touch and a really great guitar solo is layered upon it. I don't normally get into guitar solos, but this has a very Frank Zappa like quality to it.It builds into their more middle of the road version of black metal, but for what it is still works. "Rain is the Cure" is a jazz interlude that could have been the intro for the more Enslaved like charge into "Black Silent Piers". This works off the typical epic metal gallop into battle. This does work its way beack into the cross roads of where their black metal sides meets their jazz side and the results prove to once again find this project at their best when residing here, as the blast beats that follow could come from anyone. The title track starts off with them on a more straight forward metallic path that is hardly as inventive what they have done earlier in the album. They do throw some electronic elements in at the end of the song but it seems more like an afterthought rather than the next logical place for the song to go.

I think these guys hit on some stellar moments, I feel when they really got mired into the metal they lose their sense of identity and it could be anyone unless the jazz touches of experimentation are there, they show they can write songs, so sometimes the metal sections feel like they are taking the easy way out. Regardless the over all result is still impressive enough in its high points for me to give this a 8.5.