Lykathea Aflame

[Linnaeus]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IArBw3XIzF4

A recent find of mine, various internet resources seem to have very high praise for the album. Normally, inconsistency in musical style through abrupt aesthetic change within a song makes me dismiss an album or band immediately, but this was too highly regarded to ignore, and I really enjoyed it.

What are the thoughts here on it?

[Invisible Sandwich]

It raises a dilemma. It sounds like the band couldn't decide whether they want to play progressive rock or straight ahead death metal, so they just began shuttling back and forth between them without much ability to write coherent transitions. They clearly have some talent for writing interesting melodic sections, and there are some sections where the drums take on an ambient texture and I understand why people like this band. On the other hand, when the aesthetic novelty wears off, I don't think there's going to be much to bite onto.

The way I see it, with some editing, the band could make an excellent half-ambient metal album with the material they have here. I'm not as sure about the more straight-ahead death metal/grindcore sections.

[Linnaeus]

Upon multiple listens, I find the melodic sections to be some of the most incredible I've ever heard, but they are so brief and seem thoughtlessly interrupted by borderline brutal/slam riffs.

So, I entirely agree with the potentiality of a melodic/ambient metal album with the better material on the piece.

If Opeth had songwriting talent and ideological dedication to the genre, this may be what they would have sounded like.

[Humanicide]

Yeah, if this band would've tightened up their approach by focusing on a single style, or made the ambient-melodic-grindy transitions less jarring, we'd be talking about something special.

As it is, I don't think their potential will ever be fully realized. I give "Elvenefris" a B-/C+, in that it seeks to do something different than what came before, but is too confused to properly channel the influences.

[wEEman33]

Lykathea Aflame write lots of cool parts that don't really fit together well in a song. The ambient track that ends this album is legendarily bad. Their snare drum is also way too high in the mix.

Still, I give them credit for having a unique sound and being more creative than 90% of death metal bands. Lyrically, they are on a different plane, too. I also like how most of their guitar parts have two independent lines going at once instead of the typical "doubling" style most bands use.

I've owned this album for about ten years now and still get the itch to pop it in on occasion. The remaster they put out a while back sounds way better than the original, for whatever that's worth.

[trephanation]

i'm pretty surprised this album isn't getting torn apart here. always struck me as a major key version of none so vile, and was one of the first semi-obscure DM albums i got into as a teenager. nowadays i still listen to a few songs from it.

[dead last]

Sounds to me like they do a pretty fine job of transitioning from the melodic sections (which are very uplifting) to the brutal parts. Sometimes they are abrupt but not so jarring that it seems like the band just didn't know where to go. I also notice how the grindy sections will actually keep going with a mutation of a melodic riff that preceded it. If they made more time for transitioning between pretty/ugly sections, the songs would have dragged, I think. They did a good job of keeping fat off the songs.

The drummer's smooth blasting style makes me think of Flo from Cryptopsy. The snare sound also sounds similar.

That outro track is hilarious though.

[thrust]

The melodies and relentless patchwork remind me of Molested.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfGr3lGuuGY
I wonder if it was an influence or springboard for Lykathea Aflame.

Thanks for the share, had not heard this album.

[Annihilation]

The melodies and relentless patchwork remind me of Molested.

Really astute observation.

[dead last]

Does anyone know where I can find a consumable manefestation of this musical product?

Amazon has some used copies but they are expensive and I'd rather have the reissue anyway.

[wEEman33]

Willlowtip stocks it from time to time:

http://www.willowtip.com/store/details/lykathea-aflame-elvenfris.aspx

Right now it's out of stock.

I would try emailing the store to find out when the next shipment is coming in. The owner is usually good about responding to emails.

[dead last]

Outstanding. I will keep an eye out there. Thank you.