LVPVS
Professor Black
This album was made in a way that can be a surprise for the fans. Yes, because if you have heard "I Am the Rock" prior this one, you'll be astonished for what "LVPVS" will bring you. In such way, it seems that PROFESSOR BLACK is a strange musical entity with many different places to be understood. On this one, the band uses a different insight: four long songs that are deeply influenced by Black Metal and other Extreme Metal genres, but with some sad and introspective parts from Doom Metal and others when the tempos are slower. There are keyboards parts to create the right atmospheres. Of course such long songs demand that you must be creating new rhythmic parts to evade being boring for the listener. And let me tell you: be prepared, because "LVPVS" is not easy to be understood.
Harsh is the sound quality of the album, and the idea seems to be in this way, so the instrumental tunes were chosen to be distorted and filthy, seeming like they are searching for something into the SWOBM and its "ugly aesthetics". But for such musical work using some melancholic moments, a clear insight would be better. All the songs have the same length: 11:06 minutes. But in an album that has no vocal parts, it's hard to focus our attention for such long time periods. "Habeas Corpus" is heavily influenced by SWOBM bands, due its aggressive insight, with some good guitar parts, but the constant rhythm can be boring sometimes. On "Too Soon", we have a melodic an deeper song, with some very good guitar riffs and the right tempo changes to evade boredom (and good guitar solos are heard as well), and the same can be heard on "Stations" (on this one, fine keyboards parts can be heard). Ending the album, "Every Second" seems to be a mix between earlier Blues Rock songs from the 70's with the SWOBM aesthetics, with that moldy and crude atmosphere that we are used when we speak of the genre.
It's a very good work, but all that's left to say is that this face of PROFESSOR BLACK shown on "LVPVS" means to be worked in a better way next time.
7 / 10
Good
Songwriting
Musicianship
Memorability
Production
"LVPVS" Track-listing:
1. Habeas Corpus
2. Too Soon
3. Stations
4. Every Second
Professor Black Lineup:
P. Black - Drums, Rhythm Guitar, Lead Guitar on "Too Soon"
Matt Johnsen - Lead guitar
JWW - Bass
J. Lehtisalo - Keyboards
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