5ive
5ive (CD) 2001 Tortuga
If you wonder why this review is on the doom-metal.com website, be not alarmed. This is not the boy band with the same name. On the contrary I believe that anyone into the boy band would loathe this release as it has nothing in common with mainstream music.

To be more specific then, the music we are hearing here is a mixture between drone/doom and stoner. Actually at times the music grows fast enough to lose most of the doom elements and covert into what might be called stoner/drone. However, since the music does tilt over to the doom side for the majority of the album, I have no problem calling this musical work for doom.

One of the most noteworthy features of this album is the intensity of the music. It's an incredibly thick wall of sound that emits from my speakers right now. Actually it's thick enough to be almost claustrophobic if you just turn up the volume far enough. This doesn't mean that you won't get a quiet moment, because you do get one now and then. And when they come it's usually a bass line that dominates it.

The band can often be compared to Pelican when it comes to the riffs, but 5ive is far from as melodic as them. Some hints of industrial guitar sounds are replacing the melody and keep the music interesting, even though the flow of the music is mainly the same throughout a song. Still the buzzing, heavy riffage is similar enough to Pelican that I dare say that doomster fans of this band would almost for certain enjoy 5ive too.

Is there anything I've left out? Oh, yeah. The headbanging. Actually this review took a while longer to write than I had anticipated because I've been so busy headbanging to the music. The combination of intensity, heavy stoner elements, and of course the ever-pounding doom, makes the music simply perfect to bang you head to. So fans of headbanger doom might want to check this out as well.

Now that the CD has come to an end, I'd just like to make a final note. It's about the silence that remains now that the music has stopped. It's so quiet that it's almost uncomfortable. Really makes one contemplate on the sheer thickness of the music...
Album Cover

1. Burning Season
2. Orange
3. The Baron
4. Jules Verne's Dream
5. Bicycle Rider
6. Cerrado

Approx. 47 minutes
Reviewed by: Arnstein H. Pettersen
The Telestic Disfracture (CD) 2001 Tortuga
Already the same year as their self titled debut album came out, 5ive produced a second album. It is common that original bands start out with a simple idea of their own direction. The next step is to make the music more complex and closer to what one think is ideal. In other words maturing, and 5ive matured in less than a year.

One of the most noteworthy changes is the introduction of vocals. The vocals are clear, progressive sounding and remind me of Devin Townsend. They keep you focused on the music and widen the perspective of it.

The wall of sound has by no means been removed. The same old 10 foot thick wall of concrete sound is the trademark of 5ive, and by adding a few elements like good intros, the vocals and intense alterations, they open up for a much wider array of possibilities.

Musically 5ive has developed even more in common with Pelican than on their first album. Both bands clearly do have a distinct sound though, and seems to fill each other out nicely to cover this area of drone. But if you like Pelican, and Pavementsaw, then this is definitely something that can capture your interest.

I finish this review with a sore neck. The main problem with 5ive is the fact that it's really hard to avoid head-banging to it. Thus I better finish this before I get a whiplash.
Album Cover

1. Stockholm Blues
2. Nitinol
3. Shark Dreams
4. Synapse X 3-A. Sleep For The Larsen B Shelf
5. Synapse X 3-B. Telluric In Transudate
6. Synapse X 3-C. Comae

Approx. 69 minutes
Reviewed by: Arnstein H. Pettersen
Versus (EP) 2004 Tortuga
This EP was released as a very limited edition version of the 'Kid606 VS 5ive's Continuum Research Project' split 12". There are two major differences between the releases. First off none of Kid606's tracks are on 'Versus'. Also the third track, 'Man Or Maker...' is not present on the split. In fact when originally recorded it wasn't supposed to be a 5ive's Continuum Research Project track at all. But more about that later.

The music on this album can be split into two seperate directions because of the third track. The main direction is the stonerish "wall of sound" drone/doom that most people connect with this band. Compared to their earlier releases the sound is very much the same, so how they manage to make each of the songs sound unique is beyond me. Still they somehow do. Perhaps it's the hidden complexity of the music that allows this?

The second direction is the same as the one on Ben Carr's (their guitarist) side-project: The Theory Of Abstract Light. I can almost see the "Aha!" in your eyes as you read this. Yep, 'Man Or Maker...' was indeed originally meant for this project. The sound of this project isn't the powerful drone force that 5ive's Continuum Research Project produce. It's still drone, but it's much lighter and more... mathematical? I'm not sure it's the right word, but it's abstract at least.

Except for those who really want the third track or collectors, there's really no point in getting this EP instead of the 12" split with Kid606. Especially since you get more music from buying the split. But the music is still the same good stuff, so anyone who likes this band, if you do get the chance of picking it up, it's not something you are likely to regret.
Album Cover
1. Soma
2. Reso-I
3. Man Or Maker...

Approx. 20 minutes
Reviewed by: Arnstein H. Pettersen