Plasticine People

Some time ago I received the latest EP release of Lashblood from Russia. Lashblood is a band which belongs into the scene of Stavropol, which gives us many good releases especially the last few years that I am following it. Lashblood consists of five members, they are together since 2007 under the name Lash, they changed it in 2011, while they have released a full length album and one EP. So “Plasticine People” was released in February of 2015 and it contains five compositions of overall duration of about twenty eight minutes. Although it is an EP, it is quite satisfying regarding the feeling of a complete work that it offers to the listener, as into the tracks, the band presents its ideas in a complete way and with perfectly delivered structure.

Concerning the music that they present us, here the listener can find paranoid, frozen, violent but technical Black Metal which is trying to get into the mind of the listener and affect his psychology. The violent disharmonic melodies and the torturing riffing create the scenery and the atmosphere flawlessly, while a big impression will be caused by the beautiful parts in which other instruments are distinguished, such as piano or saxophone that they add a weird Jazz touch to the tracks. What will also catch the attention of the listener are the beautiful coral vocals that exist here and there. The rhythm mainly is fast while there are some medium tempo passages too. The duration is not the same in every song, it last from three to seven minutes and it is exactly as long as each track needs in order to evolve. Their structure is very good, with a lot of changes mainly into the feeling and the atmosphere, but also into the rhythm and the riffs, so that all these changes make the tracks more interesting.

The instruments as also into every other release from the scene of Stavropol, so in here too they are played with nice technic and high quality. The guitars rule the compositions presenting to the listener the feelings very vividly and intensively. Their sound is frozen and metallic, it shows the industrial influences of the band. The bass is almost inaudible. The drums have interesting lines, with fast outbursts, beautiful turnings and torturing, slow parts. The vocals are harsh Black Metal vocals quite expressing and intense, while in some parts we will come across coral vocals too. The production has delivered a very harsh and almost industrial sound which fits a lot to the style of the band. The mixture is very balanced, putting the bass lower so that to achieve that harsh and frozen sound. The lyrics are written in Russian and I don’t know what they are about.

My last contact with the music of Lashblood, was with the split with Deathmoor under the name Lash back then. The evolution that they present from then until today is big. Plasticine People is a very good release. Certainly, their fans have already bought the album. On the other hand, those of you who haven’t got to know them already, I think that it is a very nice opportunity to make your first contact with the band and their music. Buy it.