ALBUM REVIEW: Universal Chaos – Rendezvous Point

Music shouldn’t just be an auditory experience, we should feel it as much as we hear it. RENDEZVOUS POINT have very much employed this philosophy ever since unveiling their debut in 2015, concocting a cathartic blend of progressive metal and pulsing texture. Armed with genre luminary Baard Kolstad – the drummer of LEPROUS – they are now set to release their sophomore album Universal Chaos and resume their climb towards being one of Norway’s most exciting bands. Gathering reputation at as fast a pace as they notes they excrete, they have continued to hone their sound, strive towards being the very best version of themselves and afford the band a unique identity.

The first of the nine tracks is Apollo, which grows in a swell of innocuous noise. Feeling like a slow tide brushing over a shale beach, it allows an early opportunity for us to hear the idyllic vocals of front man Geirmund Hansen, which are wrapped vine-like around subtly employed voice samples. The prog roots run deep, and the build up blooms with a patient gradient. The guitars chug, but not with a vicious intent. Instead the edges are blurred, sliding atop one another and full of soul. This invokes a moody slur that slouches along in angst. Distant World feels a little more austere, as its name suggests. The heaviness is ramped up and Kolstad‘s drumming begins to pound. We hear more wandering guitar flourishes, sinister vocals and even brass layering before a tantalising solo closes the track.

Bass rips into the intro of title track Universal Chaos, and from here the album’s technical nature becomes blatantly prominent. At face value it feels rather messy, but beneath the surface lies some seriously formidable musicianship and intelligent song-writing. As RENDEZVOUS POINT transition back and forth between riffs, breakdowns and solos, they continue to impress with each shift in dynamic. One could be forgiven for thinking of AGENT FRESCO when Pressure begins, as the notes jutter and time signatures are manipulated abundantly.

One thing that’s impossible to ignore here is the comparison to LEPROUS. The resemblance is inevitable, which could be a blessing or a curse. Let’s gun for the side of optimism however, as although Universal Chaos carries a very similar tone at times, it also contains enough of its own DNA to stand unique – let’s just call it a distant relative. The drumming is certainly a stand out factor, as tracks like The Fall and The Takedown feel breathtaking in their prime. Perhaps certain areas of the album do feel a little lengthy and this time could be better used developing even more innovation to push the record into the upper echelons of progressive metal, but that cannot take away from the fact that the overall tenor of Universal Chaos is encapsulating.

The black sheep of the album is Unfaithful, which has all the personality traits of a stadium filling rock track. Electric flourishes and giant, dirty riffs evoke thoughts of MUSE, and Geirmund pushes the boundaries of his voice as he hurls beefy verses at the mic. Normality resumes with Resurrection as RENDEZVOUS POINT dial down the dimmer switch to create more ambient escapism. The lyrics soar and ponder the question “Do I belong here?” with the track continuing to thrash out that idea across its breadth. Finally we hear Undefeated. It’s a slow and storm-less addition, lacking the intensity of earlier tracks but making up for it in sheer emotive vigour.

Leaving such a well established, highly regarded band in order to start another project is always a difficult position to find yourself in. Shaking of the stigma of LEPROUS and the preconceptions it brings cannot have been easy, but RENDEZVOUS POINT have excelled by using their knowledge and stubbornness to adapt. Sure, there may be room for improvement, but Universal Chaos is a success story worthy of being placed on its own pedestal.

Rating: 8/10

Universal Chaos is set for release May 24th via Long Branch Records. 

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