Review: Pyogenesis “Waves of Erotasia” [Nuclear Blast]

It’s easy to assume that doom/death metal bands lost it once they had settled for a lighter sound, regardless of the actual outcome. The unfortunate truth is that some of these doom/death metal bands started to lose it even earlier and who would be a better example than Pyogenesis? Waves of Erotasia could still be described as a doom/death metal EP – even if it’s already more accessible than Ignis Creatio… but unfortunately, it’s hardly enjoyable at all.

At this point in time, Pyogenesis could be described as a German variant of post-Gothic Paradise Lost and while that should be a good thing, it’s not in this case. Tim’s vocals remain gruff, but it’s hard to them seriously; imagine that a young Nick Holmes used his voice to portray a villain in a cartoon and you’ll end up with Tim’s comical growls. Just like the Paradise Lost of old, there’s a strong emphasis on active leads present; you’ve got some leads dancing around some palm-muted guitar riffs, slower ‘emotional’ passages… yet none of these work extremely well. Flo has the right ideas in mind, but his execution leaves to be desired and if you ever wondered what Greg Macintosh would sound like after a few sleeping pills, then look no further.

As you could expect, these issues damage the compositions fairly well and it makes Waves of Erotasia sound pretty hilarious. Granted, you could argue that some doom/death metal bands did have a sense of humor – think of Visceral Evisceration, but their comical attempts were obviously intentional and best of all: they knew how to write proper tunes. In Pyogenesis’ case, the laughable moments were most likely unintentional and if you think of any quality songs here, you better think again. ‘Through the Flames’ introduces a moody piano motif that recalls The Gathering’s debut record, but it quickly shows its true colors once it rouses on a relatively faster paced riff àla Paradise Lost, yet it’s hard to take the track seriously. Tim’s vocals provide more comical than dramatic effects, clean vocals leave no lasting impression behind whatsoever, while the guitars go one ear in and one ear out; only to remind the listener that Pyogenesis are still playing metal at this point.

The other two tracks are quite slower and while I enjoy doom/death metal bands to take a slow approach, Pyogenesis end up writing some seriously dull crap. ‘In the End’ starts off in a promising fashion; it’s that slow-pounding drum passage that introduces the same foreboding feel of My Dying Bride’s ‘Sear Me’, but it quickly becomes clear that the track isn’t on the same level by any means – that is, unless you’re fond of these snoozing guitars that feature a decent tone, but provide no worthy riffs of any kind. Strangely enough, the band somehow decides to settle for a post-punk delivery half way through, before a laughable groove riff and an unexpected sample intervene and if that sounds good to you, I’m afraid that we’re not on the same page. Likewise, ‘Down’ at least refrains from taking any embarrassing directions from a musical point of view, yet with little oomph to the guitars and a waste of decent violin lines, the end result is something that stylistically resembles My Dying Bride or Celestial Season on a bad day. Funny enough, the baritone crooks are so bad that they would make Peter Steele roll in his grave and with its one dimensional narrative, it’s hard not to pay attention to the harsher vocals; try not to laugh once you’ll come across that overly dramatic chorus!

Waves of Erotasia is pretty damn bad, but at least it provides some laughter and that’s somewhat of a redeeming value, right? Just listen to the acoustic finale with its inappropriate growls and bland clean vocals. With the exception of the brief harsher vocals, it’s reminiscent of later Katatonia and comparable bands; nothing that’s of my interest. Verdict: try Ignis Creatio if you’re interested in Pyogenesis‘ better days and avoid anything after; I can guarantee that you’ll lose your sanity once your curiosity gets the best of you.