Illustrations
Acts of God
(Self-Release)
Sometimes all it takes is a little extra taste: the sort that’s built over time, and used every so effectively. This isn’t easy to do; it takes a wide angle and a lean format, but when layered on top of structures solid and known, a dimension can become infinite. San Antonio extreme metal outfit, Illustrations, exhibit this stratosphere in a unique way. The band’s newest record, Acts of God, is immense. Something built existentially, and performed with power.
Opener’s “This is the Dark Era” and “Pestilence”, bend center straight, positioning you for reaction. The band never curves too far into one direction (and this is something of a miracle). Each measure is new in a way, full of propulsion and energy. Vocalist Matt King is dark and gritty, in a blackened-death sort of way. As monotonous as this coining can be, blackened-death actually fits King pretty well; he sort of floats on top of the band’s dreamy, yet infinitely aggressive, mode. Guitarists Nicodemus Gonzalez and Cesar Bernal are like the dark space versions of Duane Allman and Dickey Betts. They hover, jazz it up, but always seem to keep their sense of tradition.
“Libation” redirects your mindscape. A digital monster trapped in an analog nightmare. The song pulls you into the void, texturally and true. Then you’re running free in “A Blessing from Below”, a death metal hymn with hints at Tribulation admiration. The song works well because of its constant good taste. Illustrations like to swish boxes in their grid, run up and down and groove the corners, and paint…always to paint. The band can take a pretty standard format and work it around till it’s dizzy and fun. And this is their special charm.
“Harrowed End” is all slick riffs and ‘80s dark wave, expanding on the open-minded approach the group sticks to. Fitting personal keepsakes into the grand diagram the band calculates is what makes specialness happen. And the songs on Acts of God move swiftly and strongly because Illustrations love to shape them.
“Chains of Reality” takes the dark wave perhaps a little to far; proving the band still has completeness not quite in reach. But “The Killing Field” is right back into the madness: technical, raw and punk. The band sound young, but play old. And that’s a nice juxtaposition.
Acts of God fades a little towards the end. “A Vacant Store”, ‘Lost Communication” and “Eternal Plight” are sort of a jumbled mess, though I do get the compression the band is attempting. It’s just a bit too long. Mostly, Illustrations wreck it truly hard with their new album. There’s a special joy in each accursed yowl, each progressive jaunt.
