ALBUM REVIEW: Dream Weapon – Genghis Tron
Having an opportunity to be a fly on the wall during the writing process for the new GENGHIS TRON album would have been nothing short of a priceless experience. How exactly do you approach a musical after over a decade away from the drawing board, a timespan made only more challenging by a turnover in band members? This was the challenge faced by the US experimental metallers as they rolled up their sleeves and blew the metaphorical dust off their once discarded instruments, intent on bringing their cult success back to the boil with their upcoming album Dream Weapon.
A lot can change in ten years. Societies grow, people mature drastically, and more importantly, their ideologies morph into something totally different. It is not uncommon for bands with long, thriving careers to see their sound gradually shift, as they grow as people, adapt their tastes and adjust to an ever-changing musical landscape. In the case of GENGHIS TRON, that subtle shift was forced into becoming something more seismic, feeling more like a reincarnation than a continuing. That isn’t to say that the band don’t echo shadows of their old self. That definitive sound remains, but it feels much more evolved. They talk about how they approached the process in the same way as they always have, which means that for the most part, Dream Weapon carries their energetic flame, despite the change in idea.
Our first taste of this new era is in the opening track Exit Perfect Mind, an introductory piece that is almost psychedelic and leads into the first track proper, Pyrocene. The most striking features here are electronic, feeling largely dreamlike and hypnotic, while maintaining a solid rhythm that carries the song along at an engaging pace. A background listen wouldn’t bear much fruit, but a focused ear would reap the benefits of the kind of fine, nuanced detail that GENGHIS TRON have always been capable of.
The title track is up next, and ups the ante somewhat. It’s a step back to basics here, as the pace becomes a little more frenetic and the drums begin to rip through the track. Accompanied by the riffs of course, while pile forwards and carry the track into dreamy choruses. The vocals seem like an afterthought, important to the mix without feeling the need to upstage what is largely impressive instrumental work. Desert Stairs is another ambient reset button, that leads into the second half of the album.
Alone In The Heart Of The Light changes the tone somewhat, as glitchy, trip-hop beginnings branch out into another fluid track. It all stays very atmospheric, and begins to feel reminiscent of TESSERACT‘s shift in sound. Although not comparable in terms of style, the similarities stem from dropping a certain sense of heaviness in favour of much more patient, cathartic soundscape. This remains true of the album’s longest track Ritual Circle, which meanders but ultimately centres around ambient philosophy.
And it works! It’s natural that long-standing fans of GENGHIS TRON will have mixed feelings about this album, given their preconceptions and their reasons for falling in love with the band in the first place. However, by taking a step back and acknowledging what this effort actually is, it could well be loved in equal measure. Again, showing flashes of their old selves amidst the synthwave-esq melodies in the closing tracks Single Black Point and Great Mother might not be enough to appease all their critics, but Dream Weapon is an album deserved of bearing the GENGHIS TRON name.
Rating: 8/10
Dream Weapon is set for release March 26th via Relapse Records.
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