Conspiracy - 'Concordat'

The latest project from Al Hazred (aka Alex Carpathian Wolf), formerly of Melechesh frequently rips at ludicrous speed in an imposing one-man black-death-thrash gig.

Since stepping down from Melechesh as Al Hazred, Alex Carpathian Wolf has assimilated nearly all forms of metal surrounding his bustling mind. Concordat is thus the collective swirl of Bathory, Ensiferum, Burzum, Tyr and Finntroll spun with proud meticulousness.

Though the Wolf has had to farm out all instrumental duties in Conspiracy unto himself (as opposed to the earlier incarnation of the group which began in the mid-nineties), the new and certainly improved Conspiracy amalgamates the diverse styles of extreme metal on Concordat in entertaining fashion.

It’s largely perceptible Carpathian Wolf utilizes bpm-happy drum machines for generous portions of the first half of Concordat to give songs such as “Mentally Ill God,” “Die in Style” and “Conquerdate (Concordat)” outrageous bursts of thrash. Nevertheless, Wolf is outright proficient with his layered guitars to the point he could fool some into believing Conspiracy was back in full numbers. Then again, the second half of the album features a heavier lean on live drumming it only escalates the impressiveness of Carpathian Wolf’s musical prowess, using “Courage” as a blazing example.

As Concordat bears a heavy kindred spirit to black metal (chiefly from Wolf’s raspy lizard vocals), this is a thrash album at heart with oodles of death and black metal subtleties filtering through its underbelly. Or in the case of the slower-paced “Faith” and “Last Veteran,” helpings of doom, power and Viking metal manifest amidst Carpathian Wolf’s demanding guitar playing and knotty beat patterns.

Loads of black metal acts are one-man operations, which is well and good for some but definitely not all. In the case of the newer Conspiracy, the lone wolf act out of the Carpathians has set a high standard of individual achievement with this infinitely busy yet well-schooled endeavor.