Review Summary: Technical death metal well balanced between psychedelic intensity and melody.
There will surely be a certain amount of skepticism in the air when you hear about a band combining deathgrind with elements of psychedelia and technicality. You wonder whether these genres which sound complete in themselves will sound as good when blended together by the recently formed Gigan. But fear no more. Gigan’s second LP
Quasi-Hallucinogenic Sonic Landscapes is a serious piece of work. This is not your regular dose of tech death. This is precisely directed intensity.
Gigan have not treaded completely new territory with this album, but they have managed to combine their influences and blend them together into a very solid, convincing package. The songs are generally concise and never seem to drag on. In fact, at certain points the riffs are so catchy and addictive that you will be left wishing for them to play again. The guitar-work is certainly flawless and the riffs form a great core of the band’s sound. However, the band’s music is not dominated by riffs alone; instead, the music is dense and has an ever-present thick atmosphere which seemingly makes the album flow. Few bands in similar genres accomplish this and thus their songs are strong individually but the album doesn’t flow like a coherent piece of work. Gigan have accomplished this beautifully through smart use of atmospherics.
Even though the riffs are amazingly catchy, the highlight of this album is the drum work. It is so confident and dripping with variety that it almost transforms a very good album into an excellent one. Throughout most of the songs, the drums are usually the driving force. The bass is well done as well, but it seems like there wasn’t as much potential for the bass compared to percussion.
Overall, this album consists of good quality music driven by phenomenal drum work and psychedelic riffing. It is highly recommended for fans of death metal and especially those who seek a breath of fresh air in their music. It may as well go on to become the best tech death album of 2011.
