I.Corax
The Cadaver Pulse I: Sealed In A Radiant Larval Maelstrom (CD-R) 2003 Blue Sector
The releases of I.Corax seem to be chronologically divided into states. Whereas this release ends on 'State XIV', the following release, 'The Cadaver Pulse II: Mothelix Liquescent', starts on 'State XV'. At the moment I don't know the reasons behind these states but since the other bands related to I.Corax, such as Halo Manash and Dolorian, are based on alchemical or psychological ideas; I would guess that it has a similar function. There is one strange thing about these states. Between the bands demo, 'Suns', and this album, there is a gap in the states. 'Suns' ends on 'State IV', 'The Cadaver Pulse I: Sealed In A Radiant Larval Maelstrom' begins on 'State IX'. The four states inbetween are just missing. I don't know why it is so, but I must admit that it has sparked my curiosity. The track lengths on this album vary a lot. The two first states each pass the 20 minute mark. The remaining vary between 5 and 10 minutes. In any case, whatever their length, they still portray an equally good quality of musicianship. 'The Cadaver Pulse I: Sealed In A Radiant Larval Maelstrom' is a dark industrial release with strong tendencies towards ambient. There is this aura of paranoia and fear that seeps out. It doesn't grab you instantly and suck you in. Instead the haunting atmosphere takes it's time to creep up on you and escalates slowly in a sinister approach. Heaps of echoing effects, whispers, otherworldly wind instruments and a buzzing drone in the background. This is what you can expect from this CDR. It being a CDR should not scare anyone away if the description hasn't done so already. The quality of the music is very high and it being released on CDR only makes it cheaper. However it will be re-released as a 2CD set together with the second part of The Cadaver Pulse series.	1. State IX 2. State X 3. State XI 4. State XII 5. State XIII 6. State XIV Approx. 72 minutes
Reviewed by: Arnstein H. Pettersen
The Cadaver Pulse II: Mothelix Liquescent (CD-R) 2003 Blue Sector
An interesting thing about the 'The Cadaver Pulse' series is the covers. They are colored in translucent green/turquoise with no booklet and no place for a back. Instead they have front art and contain manipulated photographs of what seems to be nature related stuff. Just to study the cover is interesting in itself. Especially since I suspect the photos are to be linked to the music in some way. At least I know that one of Anti I. Haapapuro's other projects, Halo Manash uses symbols and other visual focuses in addition to the music. 'The Cadaver Pulse II: Mothelix Liquescent' starts off where 'The Cadaver Pulse I: Sealed In A Radiant Larval Maelstrom' ended. The industrial/dark ambient sound is clearly quite similar, but this time it's not as intense. It's still oppressive and disturbing, just in a calmer way. But however calm it has become, it's still not recommended for sensitive ears and souls. This is a dark piece of music with, as far as I can hear, not a single sound in it that is pleasant to the ear. I guess you can call it anti-harmonic. It provokes the brain and while I have tried to study at the same time as listening to this, I can't seem to focus properly. It's like this kind of music stimulates some of the primal instincts. Like anxiety, or like that feeling of something constantly watching you and is slowly crawling closer. The good night song for mental masochists. A 1000 copies of this CD were pressed, but still the demand is apparently high enough for Cyclic Law Records to plan a 2in1 re-release of this and the first CD in the series. This means that at least in the near future, the CD will be easily available. Very good news for fans of dark ambient/industrial.	1. State XV 2. State XVI 3. State XVII 4. State XVIII 5. State XIX 6. State XX Approx. 66 minutes
Reviewed by: Arnstein H. Pettersen
from gOLDem flesh to silverb ONE (CD-R) 2003 Blue Sector
I must admit I was impressed by the quality of this CD. If I didn't know any better I would say that this was a well-planned studio album while in fact it's a live studio recording. If I hadn't read the statement by the band themselves and hence verified that it is in fact true, I would never have guessed. The quality of the sound is in fact so good that most studio albums fall below. The fact that all the tracks have no title makes me wonder if the album is not just a live studio recording, but in fact completely improvised as well. Yet another interesting thing about this release is the name. If you read the capital letters only it reads "OLD ONE". Who is the "Old one"? Is it an ancient deity or a being of force? Or might it be a reference to a psychological state? The name of the band can perhaps answer it all. "Corax" is latin for raven. So I.Corax would mean: "I, the raven". According to Norse mythology the raven sees all and is the messenger of Odin, the king of the gods. But this is just a guess which quite frankly, I find to fit the music. The music, if you can call it that, is very dark, sinister and claustrophobic. I know that sounds a lot like the description of Halo Manash, but if you compare the two then you'll find that I.Corax is far more pulsating and much less ambient. In fact there is not much ambient at all on this CD. But the dark and sinister aura is very similar for both bands, just in different ways. While Halo Manash focuses on the haunting and subconscious mind, I.Corax instead puts effort into making very claustrophobic audio. Imagine being locked up in an isolated room. There is no door, no window and no other way to get out. In this room there are voices that constantly surround you. There is no one there... At least no one that you can see. There are so many of them that you cannot discern a single word from the constant mumbling. I find that this has to be the best way to describe this kind of music. An unstoppable experience of horrors which you'll never be sure whether comes from your head or is real. For those who like music that really freaks you out and torments your very soul, this has to be a perfect record. It's so intense that you can feel it around your heart. But if you are faint of heart, I have to warn you that this might be more disturbing than you can handle.	1. [untitled] 2. [untitled] 3. [untitled] 4. [untitled] 5. [untitled] 6. [untitled] 7. [untitled] 8. [untitled] Approx. 45 minutes
Reviewed by: Arnstein H. Pettersen
Kuilu (CD-R) 2004 Blue Sector
There is one thing about this CD that sets it apart from all the other previous works by I.Corax; the tracks have actual names. Since the album doesn't have any lyrics, it's the names that are the main indication of the ideas behind the music. The names relate to things of nature ('Tephra' means volcanic rock and glass), mystical (a 'Menhir' is a lone, erected stone/monolith) and emotions ('Animus Desertus' is latin for "desolated soul"). The name of that last track and the name of the CDR, 'Kuilu' (which is Finnish for "abyss"), also says something about the mood of the music. It's simpler than most of their other works and while it's just a little less disturbing, it's mostly not as intense as their other works. Here they even incorporate some hints of melody from time to time. But don't get me wrong. It's still cold and unpleasant like it has always been. The reason that the sound of this CDR is different is because this recording was acutally done two years before. The recording was made during I.Corax' first live performance on the 2nd of March 2002. Hence it's not as "mature" as many of the later releases. However, it still stands as an excellent release in the dark ambient/industrial genre and it should be mentioned to their credit that the sound quality is great. It sounds just like a studio recorded album. 'Kuilu' is not the most essential work from I.Corax. Hence beginners might want to start with one of their other releases. But that doesn't mean that anyone who loves really dark and unmelodic stuff won't like this. It's quite the opposite if you ask me. It's mostly because it was released as a more limited edition than the other releases. It's doubtful that any of the shops still carry it.	1. Face Of The Sun 2. Menhir 3. Tephra 4. Animus Desertis Approx. 41 minutes
Reviewed by: Arnstein H. Pettersen
Spectral Metabolism (CD) 2005 Kaos Kontrol
This is the debut full-length of I.Corax. This is somewhat strange as some of the previous releases have exceeded 60 minutes in lenght (and is hence longer than this CD), but it seems that since they were released on pro-CDR and not a real pressed CD, the guys behind the project didn't count them as real full-lenghts. 'Spectral Metabolism' is based on some of I.Corax' first recordings, done by Anti Ittna Haapapuro and Jaakko Vanhala during the period between 1999 and 2002. Apparently the industrial/dark ambient that is found on this disc is mostly based on direct recordings of the sounds of nature. I'm not 100% sure wether or not they actually use any instruments. There are some sounds that I can't imagine coming from anything besides an instrument, but then again digital manipulation seems to be able to make anything possible. This is one of the darkest pieces of music (if you can call it that) I have ever heard. Not only does it contain the usual unmelodic, disturbing sound that is typical for I.Corax. It also contains more distinct features that go from being in your face one second, to fading into the aether the next. Combine this with an intensive sound with so many layers that it's impossible to focus directly on the music. And that's perhaps what is so brilliant about this CD. It tries to avoid the consious mind of the listener and instead penetrates the subconscious, creating a direct link to the listener's emotions. If you close your eyes and just let the music grow on you, it puts you into this trance-like state. The unmodified natural sounds will automatically put the mind's journey towards it. But the experience is not just nature alone, the dark atmsophere creates a vast, endless soundscape which floats between the seams of reality. This instantly reminds me of the spiritual journeys of the shamans. Knowing that these guys have an interest in such things only makes my suspicion stronger. I honestly believe that this CD is intended to be a spiritual journey, just like the shamans used to. I've said it before and I'll have to say it again. I.Corax is not for the faint of heart. Yet many consider their works to be some of the best ever amongst the industrial/dark ambient genre. Anyone who has an interest in this kind of music should try this. Absolutely mindblowing.	1. (untitled) 2. (untitled) 3. (untitled) 4. (untitled) 5. (untitled) 6. (untitled) 7. (untitled) 8. (untitled) 9. (untitled) Approx. 55 minutes
Reviewed by: Arnstein H. Pettersen