Imperialist
Cipher

Cipher, that’s an interesting name for an album. And that just happens to be the title of the debut album by American band Imperialist, but it is not just the name that is interesting. The artwork is quite eye-catching with its theme of space adventure and darkness all rolled into one really good-looking thing. Perhaps it is even worth purchasing this album just for the artwork, it is certainly worth thinking about it. It is not only the artwork that is good though, the music of the band is strong as well and I would say that it is one that would probably do well in the record collection for those who are still purchasing CDs or Vinyl LPs.

Black Metal is the name of their game, quite strong and massive soundscape with some elements borrowed from the thrash genre and some grand arrangement giving the album as feel of the space adventure that it probably is supposed to be. The production is modern and very powerful, not like most black metal that end up on my table, music that I then listen to and “accidentally” elbow into the garbage next to the table. The vocalist could be more interesting, he sounds fairly typical of the genre, which is boring and probably the weakest point of the album. The variation is okay but the album is also over fifty minutes long, a bit long in my view.

The tracks can be seen as chapters in a big adventure, they are nine and the stand well on their own but also joins together very nicely into a strong package. There are no major weaknesses, the vocalist is the one I notice the most. All the tracks are of a good quality and unlike much black metal I get in my mail this is one that I like listening to, I think that it is quite strong and perhaps I might buy it if it isn’t already sold out when I have the money to spare for it. Fans of the extreme metal genre, especially the one going to regions farther from the mainstream might find this to be a very appealing album, if you are one of those you should have a closer look at this album.

And that’s the end of this review; it ends with the conclusion that I think Cipher is a rather strong album – an appealing album worth checking out if you like the extreme metal that goes into space. Perhaps it is not super brilliant in every regard but it is certainly worth checking out, an album that looks this brilliant and sounds this good is a good bet.

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