Since the release of the masterpiece called “Wolfheart,“ from a band we all know very well, who are currently treading down very muddy paths, from time to time, quality, and above all, original-sounding band have been appearing in Portugal.
Thanatoschizo, who released their debut album in late 2001 for a new and anonymous Portuguese label, are one of those bands.
This exceptional band offers to fans an atypical release, full of head-spinning changes and jumps from genre to genre, making it hard to understand what is exactly happening on the first listen. However, quality musicianship and a richness of ideas quickly put everything into place, making the album a very easy and catchy work.
Bands that base their playing on avant-garde arrangements and progressive ideas usually take it to such an extreme that their albums become unbearable to listen to. This is absolutely not the case with Thanatoschizo, because their formula is a lot smarter: mixing oldschool Death/Black sounds as a foundation with progressive/avant-garde sections represents a nice refresher for all fans of this musical genre who will surely recognize this.
The vocals are worthy of special mention – very rough male vocals (growls and screams) and an original-sounding female vocalist. If you ask yourself why it is called “Schizo Level,” believe me, you will know once you have listened to the CD. Another title for this album could have been “From the beginning of metal to today,” because this is a good guide for those who skipped over some genres of our favorite form of music! Contact:
[email protected] Score: 8/10
