Hyatari
The Light Carriers (CD) 2004/2005 Codebreaker
Hyatari is out of wild and wonderful West Virginia, and I think it’s safe to assume that nobody in Huntington (or Charleston for that matter) is doing what these guys are doing. When I first received the CD, I felt a bit of trepidation. The band seemed to be all about keyboards, sequencing, and samples, so I was worried that the southern lord had frowned upon me and I had somehow gotten on someone's techno distro by mistake. So if anything I was a bit biased against the CD before I put it on. Which caused my grin to spread all the wider as the music began... The dance crap I was expecting was nowhere in evidence. Instead, there was a dark, hypnotic vibe spreading, a dirge washed in beautiful sheets of guitar feedback with radio samples in the background. The whole thing is designed to be heard as a one-track (continuous) recording, but it’s actually made up of several smaller pieces. A slow, swirling, heavy chaos of sound gradually coalesces into more structured arrangements, with the guitar often carrying the slow and majestic beat. Finally, a drum machine makes an appearance, and the songs get more structure still. The vocals are sparse indeed; evidently Hyatari likes to let the instruments do the talking. Well, this is bliss for those who like dark, doomy, experimental metal while they zone out. There are few enough musicians trying for this kind of effect, and a laundry list will let you know whether Hyatari is for you: Sleep ('Dopesmoker'), Swans, Neurosis, Sons of Otis, Zeni Geva, Godspeed You Black Emperor!, or the Southern Lord terror of Sunn O))) or Khanate. Hyatari has something in common with all these folks, but they're a bit more melodic and less scary. Which is OK, because as much as I might like Khanate, it’s not everyday listening for me. Most of Hyatari started their musical careers in the 90s with a group called Chum. Chum’s drummer, Chuck Nicholas, went on to join Karma to Burn. I knew there was a connection in there somewhere! With the demise of KTB, Hyatari may just be West Virginia's most interesting group. And although you may be getting the feeling that these dudes are short on humour, one look at the album's packaging will give new meaning to Nigel Tufnel's classic phrase "there are none more black." Get it and feel the flow. Reviewed by Kevin McHugh Hyatari are a new droning doom group from Huntington, West Virginia, and this release is their debut album on English Codebreaker records. 'The Light Carriers' starts off with two tracks of guitar-based drone, spanning two simple melodies, some samples, and at the end some chanting vocals. Starting with the title track, things shift more towards the doom side of the spectrum, as the percussion kicks in, and the melodies are expanded. I talk about these songs as were they some sort of continuum, and in a way, they are, because each song fades or continues right on into the next one. The fourth song, 'The Fourth Realm' is my favourite of the album, and the heaviest one. The pace picks up a bit here, and we're treated to some serious riffing, shouted vocals (think industrial doom) and very heavy drum work. Later on a lead melody is introduced, which is seamlessly blended in with the heavy riffs. An invitation to some serious bangin', this! '14,000,000,000 Years Ago' mixes doomy and droning parts with a tranquil lead guitar melody. 'Harvesting Sod' is again a bit more mid-tempo, with some minimal bits of electronic melody and samples. At the end, the song bleeds into the once-again tranquil intro melody of the final track, which is also the longest (nigh on fifteen minutes). The track continues with a mixed lead and rhythm melody over some original drumming parts, which fade into a single note drone, and then into a very soft sample of (I think) crunching sand, which continues until the end. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised by this album. I've heard too many drone doom demos and releases that lacked that little bit of variation that I like, but this album has more than enough of that. Basically it is a healthy mix of drone and doom, more so than with many bands that are called drone doom. The album also has a certain industrial feel to it, which is hardly surprising considering that bands like Swans, Halo and Godflesh are among the band's influences. All in all, I think this is a debut of high quality, and it is highly recommended for lovers of drone who enjoy it spiced up with some more 'metal' parts, and those who are into industrial doom. Reviewed by: Oscar Strik	1. Sheet of Flames 2. Freeform for the Disenfranchised 3. The Light Carriers 4. Fourth Realm 5. 14,000,000,000 Years Ago 6. Harvesting Sod 7. Collapse Approx. 53 minutes