Cartilage
The Fragile Concept of Affection

THE REVIEW

After discussing the main death metal bands from Finland and providing an overview of the entire scene they belonged to, it's time to delve into the dense undergrowth of the scene, denser than one might imagine, especially considering that the country in question certainly does not lead in terms of population density, to discover bands worthy of interest that, however, were unable to make a name for themselves and sometimes didn't even manage to record an album.

Such is the case with Cartilage, who formed in 1991 in Vaasa and whose lineup features the noteworthy drummer Kai Hahto, authors of only two demos and subsequently a split with the Swedish band, and as far as I'm concerned, completely negligible, Altar.

The part of the split album belonging to Cartilage is called "The Fragile Concept of Affection" and consists of seven songs which are the last testimony left by the band, who disbanded after only a year of activity. It must be said right away that the production leaves a lot to be desired, especially the sound of the drums, and it does not enhance the work at all, but after a few listens, once you get used to that rather awful sound, these tracks will be able to provide satisfaction to fans of the genre. The style is always the classic Finnish style, characterized by sinister and hypnotic melodies and execution speed that is never particularly high, but here the technical approach is superior to that of most of their compatriot bands, although not at the level of Demilich, and the atmosphere created by the music is rather peculiar, ethereal and claustrophobic at the same time, and it is evident that the band had a strong compositional personality. To notice this, just listen to pieces like "The Underworld", "Consanguine to Understanding" and "Afterlife Sorrow (Infernal Paradise II)" which opens and closes with a growl laugh (!), which even for this strange detail alone deserves to be mentioned.

Given the band's abilities, after disbanding almost all its members found other opportunities to play, in particular guitarist Mikko Hannuksela, bassist Harri Huhtala and the aforementioned drummer Kai Hahto took part in the recordings of "A Leftover" by their compatriots Vomiturition. Kai Hahto subsequently also joined numerous other bands such as Rotten Sound, Swallow the Sun, and Wintersun.