Grenouer

Lifelong Days

Written by: PP on 28/08/2008 20:03:44

Frankly, I was just about ready to bin Grenouer's new album "Lifelong Days" after a few listens, labeling it as yet another instance of soulless, generic metal that had nothing special on offer. Then suddenly, the Russians started growing on me, and listen after listen new, intricate details began emerging from their modern metal sound, an intriguing mix between elements from hardcore, metal, and electro scenes.

Much of this initial doubt can be deduced to stem from the hardcore yelling style of vocalist Ind, as it can be rather monotonous, hiding the multiple guitar layers and especially the electronic atmospheres underneath its bare roughness. Especially the latter element has completely taken me by surprise; the clean vocal parts resemble work by Daft Punk at times, certainly an innovative addition to the metal scene. Though the electro-tuned synth/keyboard sequences are often quietly lurking in the background, upon discovery they add much needed character and uniqueness to Grenouer's sound.

Afterwards, you'll start noticing how well the guitars interplay with the raw vocals and the electronics, as on "Away From Now", where Grenouer combines the three to sound distinctly similar to Enter My Silence, just without the twin-guitar harmonies of the Finns. Remember how Raunchy's sound is often referred to as futuristic metal? For that label to hold, Grenouer must be traveling back in time from the year 2132 based on the sounds on "Lifelong Days".

Unfortunately, the disc takes quite a bit of time to start catching on, which will surely result in all too little attention being paid to the band for the time being. If they're somehow able to streamline that sound more for their next album, making it a little bit easier accessible from the get go, we might just begin approaching the really high marks. For now, a "this is really good stuff with some skippable tracks" rating will do just fine.

7

Download: Away From Now, Taken Off The List
For the fans of: Fear Factory, Enter my Silence, Raunchy
Listen: Myspace

Release date 20.06.2008
Locomotive Records

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