Deluge Zine review

One-man projects can be difficult to review, as determining their legitimacy is a bit of a task. While most reviewers would make a sharp distinction between self-accompanied recordings and group efforts, there are some artists who do much to obscure such definitions. For instance, take The Thrones. Despite being anchored on the heels of a single musician, this is one project that effectively took on a life of its own. Through the use of multiple backing tracks, its progenitor was able to rehearse, record, and even tour without any outside intervention. Other examples abound, but the bottom line is that many true solo projects are every bit as convincing (in the studio, at least) as those which employ a more traditional line up.

It is here that Indigent enters the picture. Fronted (and self-accompanied) by one Richard Tomsett, this is one of those projects that deserves a lot of credit. Tomsett has taken some of the more rudimentary aspects of blackened death metal and sanded down the rough edges to produce five songs that are brutal, yet strangely accessible. The latter adjective may raise a few eyebrows, as most of the genre s practitioners have garnered a reputation for punishing (rather than comforting) the listener. But strangely enough, the songs on this disc induce more contemplation than sensory overload. Opener Disgust features some nice chord suspensions which gradually become infused with more straightforward (and sometimes groove-laden) progressions. The result is a track which does much to put Indigent a step ahead of the pack in terms of maturity and (perhaps) even originality. Picture follows in a similar fashion, but with a certain attention to detail on the percussion tracks that might elude the less meticulous listener. The initial bass line of Poison suggests the same technical framework that graces most of the tracks on this disc, with interplay between the guitar and drum tracks that harkens back to Chuck Schuldiner s earlier days. The remaining cuts follow in much the same fashion, although I tend to think that Tomsett goes a bit overboard with the cheesy Euro-melodies on Mirror and Dust . However, my gripe with these tracks is really just a matter of personal taste. I m one of those folks who happens to be bored with the shamelessly clichõd formulas that taint all but a few members of the so-called melodic death metal scene, and getting around my bias is no easy task. But in the end, I will be looking forward to Richard Tomsett s future exploits. The last time I checked, a fairly informative website was available at http://www.indigent.co.uk. Be sure to look it up.