“Unforgiven Machine is a solid album of EM strongly tinted of a strong cosmic rock with good sequencing patterns”
1 Nightwatchers16:58
2 Underground Voice20:37
3 Architeuthis20:02
4 The Twenty Six Gills Man19:58
23fish Music (DDL 77:35)
(Progressive Berlin School)
23fish is the artistic union of Javi Canovas and guitarist David Parades and Unforgiven Machine is the result of their first musical reflections. A rather particular album which uses a strong variety of sonorities, as much heteroclites as psychedelics, on good sequential surges. Both cosmic and progressive EM, Unforgiven Machine presents 4 long tracks to similar structures where ambient intros and finales, tinted strong atmospheric incandescence, are intersected with good undulating sequences to subdivided chords which hang to good rhythmic structures.
Nightwatchers intro reflects the very ‘‘psychedelicosmic’’ ambiance that reigns around Unforgiven Machine. Variegated sonorities are twisted in vibrating serpentines, freeing thousand droning distortions, before ending into a Sea of Tranquility feeds of tender solos from a plaintive guitar. Solos which float in a beautiful cosmic quietude tinted of weak chime tinkling which, little by little, shape a Halloween style nursery rhyme which scintillates of its limpid keys. From this childish daydream emerges a sequence which waltzes awkwardly before metamorphosing itself in a heavy sequence undulating idly to subdivide itself again, before penetrating an electronic sphere where the guitar multiplies limpid solos under a slow rhythm always supported by a sequence to ascending movement. A rhythm which gradually vanishes in the lapse of memory. In oblivion filled of fine reverberating waves, as like Nightwatchers are always present. This musical staging is present on Unforgiven Machine 3other tracks which, on the other hand, have their proper characteristics. So Underground Voices presents a dark introduction of an underground world from where frees strange hooting. Dark breaths and murmurs which merge to chords of a solitary and discreet guitar thus a synth to tearing strias. From an atmospheric strangeness Underground Voices borrows a liven rhythmic passage of a superb sequence to hybrid and subdivided keys which hop in a beautiful synchronized anarchy, molding an intense tempo sprinkled of felted percussions and cymbals.
After a slow morphic intro, Architeuthis embraces the rhythmic life with a superb sequence to frantic chords. A nervous sequence which weaves another sequential structure below the breaths of a synth with angelic trumpets, whereas the rhythm slowly takes shape in order to plunge in an intense sequential bubble whose heavy chords are bitten by a guitar with vaporous solos. A very good track that brings us back in the 70’s, whereas Tangerine Dream was his best! A synth to rippling layers envelope a keyboard and a guitar with hesitant arpeggios open The Twenty Six Gills Man. Once again the intro is morphic, though a little less deadening, and furrows a slow musical procession before leading on a solid sequence whose keys hop nervously on a hybrid structure where layers of synth and guitars howl as specters on a movement which gradually intensifies its heaviness intensity. Like the preceding titles, the rhythms of The Twenty Six Gills Man revolve in complexes ‘‘psychedelicosmic’’ atmospheres before dying out in a cosmic nothingness where only Spanish voices pierce it silence.
A mixture of heavy atmospheres and rhythms quite as heavy, here are what 23fish offers us on their 1st opus. Even if more complex than the average, Unforgiven Machine is a solid album of EM strongly tinted of a strong cosmic rock approach filled of hybrid structures. An album with striking sequential passages which will please fans of good old sequences à la Tangerine Dream’s Chris Franke era.
Sylvain Lupari (September 29th, 2010) ***½**
Available at 23fish's Bandcamp