Head Control System
Murder Nature

Head Control System is a collaboration between Norwegian Kristoffer "Garm" Rygg (Ulver, ex-Arcturus, ex-Borknagar) and Portuguese Daniel Cardoso (ex-Sirius, ex-Re:aktor). The project began in 2003 under the name SinDRomE, but after Garm joined, the name was changed to the current one. In April 2006, their debut album, "Murder Nature," was released, with Garm handling the lyrics and vocal lines, while Cardoso wrote all the music and managed production (even though the skilled hand of the Norwegian can be seen in certain electronic subtleties).

The album essentially presents itself as a work of avantgarde metal with numerous influences. From the classic avantgarde (Scandinavian, to be specific), we find some elements such as the song structure, not always linear, and some compositional intricacies like the keyboards (not many, but placed in the right spots) and the guitar solos. Of course, there's Garm's vocals, which are the quintessence of avantgarde. To this strong genre imprint, another equally strong influence is added, which finds its origins in American crossover, primarily traceable in the sounds of the rhythm guitars and bass (at times it seems like listening to Korn or Faith No More), in some electronic craftiness that reminds one of a DJ (as at the beginning of "Masterpiece OF Art"), in the overall fairly compact and catchy melodies, and, more generally, in the groove of most of the tracks.

Furthermore, there are also elements with a more industrial or even drone origin, visible, for instance, in the noise base that opens the album and accompanies the entire "Baby Blue", and in the two instrumentals, "Blunt Instrumental" and "Go To Sleep", which closes the album with a guitar arpeggio that stretches for almost five minutes, over which delicate keyboards are layered.

Among the best moments of the album are "Skin Flick", a track with a splendid groove and a chorus that will forcefully get stuck in your head, and "Kill Me", the shortest piece on the album but also one of its brightest highlights. Garm's imprint on this track is clearly visible: it is a composition for keyboards and vocals, over which a rather extensive use of electronic tricks is applied, such as the reverse sound editing, which makes the music more anguished and the vocals an incomprehensible chant.

From an instrumental perspective, it's worth noting that Cardoso manages rather well with all instruments, but he is primarily a drummer and it shows: the drum parts are at least a step above the others and often, alongside Garm's vocals, elevate the quality of tracks that would otherwise be just slightly more than mediocre. The weak point of this album, if one indeed needs to be found, is that Cardoso's catchy and compact melodies and Garm's refined and surprising vocals don't always seem to create a perfect symbiosis, and at some points, it feels as though they are rowing against each other.

In short, an album with many highs and a few lows, but overall it maintains a fairly high-quality level and contributes to further enrich the already vast avantgarde landscape.

Tracklist:

1) Baby Blue

2) Skin Flick

3) Masterpiece [Of Art]

4) Blunt Instrumental

5) It Hurts

6) Watergate

7) Seven

8) Kill Me

9) Wonderworld

10) Rapid Eye Movement

11) Go To Sleep