Album: Eradefiled

Band: Artillerie

Line-up:

Noble Luke – Vocals
Raul Bellgard – Guitars
Alvin Jose – Guitars
Raj – Bass
Punti – Drums

City of Origin: New Delhi, India

Genre: Experimental/Thrashcore

Following up on their two song EP called “Prelude to Chaos”, Artillerie release their 9 track album called “Eradefiled” (Download). So does Eradefiled make Diwali 2010 a reason to celebrate for the regular Indian head banger? Or is it just another one of those “phuski” bombs?

On hearing the album for the first time, you do get an idea of the mastodonic amount of effort the guys have put into getting this album out. For the kind of music Artillerie is into, it is essential that the musical arrangement is perfect and up there so that a listener can understand and experience the journey the band is trying to create.

“The Story of Cerenia” on their blog gives a very clear perception of what the band is upto. “The Impelled” is the first track of the album and serves as a fitting prelude to the fare that follows. The next 2 tracks are “Phalanx of Chaos” and “Temple of Zeus” which were released  successfully about a year ago .  What follows this is the new stuff, the stuff that fans and critics have been waiting for.

“Hate Imbrued”, “Tormentor”, “Uninhibited” are the three tracks to follow. Hearing them will make you wonder if legendary warriors in epic Greek mythological battles actually had such music in the background while they chopped enemy heads with their swords. The surge of blood and the frustration against the system can be felt, loud and clear.

The next track is called “Lapse”. It’s my favourite track and wonderfully epitomizes the phrase “clam before the storm”. To me, it gives a glimpse of the more human and creative side of this band. The track is rightly positioned at number seven and surely does break any monotony caused by the previous six. “Lapse” prepares you for the climax of this album. I say climax because for me, this album was a journey through a battlefield. Maybe reading “The Story of Cerenia” helped me understand the music better.

The second last track of this album is “Winter of Silence”. Personally, I would’ve loved it to have been a more progressive track since it follows “Lapse”. “Life to these bones” is the final track and quite splendidly ends this epic saga called Eardefiled.

In a nutshell:

Positives:

The haunting melodies of the guitars and the bass which very strongly hold the sound together.

The music arrangement and production deserves one big fat thumbs up!

The concept…Oh yes!

Negatives:

Song structure, especially the beginnings. Sometimes you tend to feel that they begin out of nowhere.

I am a God of War fan and the band’s  Facebook page claims it to be an inspiration for them. But I like my music different from my video games.

Final Rating : 7/10.  Happy Diwali. Woohoo!

By: Karan R Bhatia.