Metal Reviews

"Ki" is a subtle, severe album. A challenge in some ways. As the "intro" to the story (the story being the four records) it needs to set the stage. The point to the music is that the whisper is louder than the roar in many ways. "Ki" is (on the surface) quiet and unassuming. Whenever it begins to lose its temper, it stops. It does not let it go, it is avoiding that temptation, as that sort of anger is really gratifying but ultimately just leaves me unhappy. "Ki" is about control, and although it is not an overtly "heavy" album, it is heavy thematically. On these four records, it starts with "Ki", which is essentially a cross section of all the albums, but the idea is that it is not here to impose itself. It just does it's thing. Like a little a.m radio playing in the corner. Many folks have been waiting to see what I do next after SYL and "Ziltoid", so after careful consideration, I wanted the first record to be quiet and subtle, however fear not chaos fans... the next two records in the quartet are progressively heavier, and the third album, "Deconstruction", is the heaviest music I've ever created. So with "Ki", I wanted to make it a bit of an appetizer. I know myself, that as I get older, a steady diet of chaotic music does little more than give me a headache. So with "Ki", I wanted to re-introduce myself in a way that says, "I can make chaos like you've never heard, but for starters, please get comfortable." The common ground to my previous releases would be my voice, but even my guitar playing has changed. I use primarily a clean tone now (no distortion) and in terms of the sonics, I have used very little compression and it is not mastered very loud. The term "Ki" loosely means "life force" and, therefore, in almost the antithesis to my previous albums, there is no real editing or triggers on the drums. Much of the music was recorded "live off the floor." I wanted to preserve the energy flow without worrying so much about mistakes.

there is no real editing or triggers on the drums. Much of the music was recorded "live off the floor." I wanted to preserve the energy flow without worrying so much about mistakes.

THIS MAKES ME SO HAPPY

yes

i was reading Colour Haze interviews yesterday (trying to figure out what kind of guitar Stefan Koglek plays) and they talked about how they recorded all the basic tracks for their albums live in studio, and i wondered why more bands didn't do that.