Also sprach Futura

Lychgate arrived to great acclaim six years ago, and since then the British supergroup has dropped a new record every couple years. Also sprach Futura is their first EP, with four of their typically bizarre mashups of avant-garde black metal mixed with church organ. The chaos that comprises the Lychgate sound explodes out at you as soon as you hit the play button. Discordant waves of guitar slosh around the organ, which lurches queasily across the mix. There are blastbeats down below, but random and vicious, cutting in and out. Progeny of the Singularity, where Esoteric's Greg Chandler exchanges his harsh growl with moaned choir vocals that sound like the denizens of a haunted house, features some excellent guitar shredding as well. Simalacrum, on the other hand, starts out slow and grim, speeding up into an oppressive storm of guitar that abruptly cuts out to let soft, clean interludes take over. The final track ends with a measured beat at least by Lychgate standards, with Chandler roaring over the organ in full Halloween-horror mode, with the guitars playing an eerie accompaniment. Like its predecessors, Also sprach Futura needs multiple listens to take in, but is ultimately rewarding.