My introduction to crust was the album Vengeance by Tragedy. I was blown away by it. I have heard a lot of crust since that day. And while I keep looking for that wow-factor that album has for me I (of course) encounter an album that has that only once in a while. Does Mustasuos blackened crust have that same impact?
Mustasuo hails from Finland, Oulu to be precise. They have named themselves after a local district. Learning Mustasuo translates to black swamp, I can appreciate that. With Hiljaisuus the band released their third album. Paradoxically the album title translates to silence. I can assure you that silence is not to be found on this album. It is also less crusty than I expected. There are some grindcore and black metal influences that dilute the crust-vibe a wee bit.
Those grindcore influences can be found in the blastbeats and at times the riffing. Just listen to the second track “Aikamme On Loppumassa”. We could discuss about whether we are listening to a grind band using d-beats or a crustband that has entered grind territory. The black metal influences are mostly found in the riffs that are used from time to time. These are not the kind of riffs made big by second wave black metal bands, but the kind of slightly dissonant riffs some more avant garde black metal bands employ. “Loputon” is a perfect example of one such song. It oozes a dirty vibe the album can use very well.
“Tilkitsen sairaat soluni” is a strange song giving you some time to breath. Here we find a spoken word section over an almost jazzy background (it even includes a clarinet). It maintains the dark vibe though. It leads into one of the grinding madness of “Kulkutauti”. This song includes a sound which could be gore grind style gurgling or just a bathtub draining. I am not sure what to think of it. I have listened to this album a dozen times or more and half the time I am turned off by it, while all other times I can appreciate it. The album closes with its longest song “Ei/En”. This song starts out blasting and d-beating away, but loses steam slowly, becoming more doomy in nature. It feels like a natural end to a hefty album.
Production wise the guitars sound lighter than I would have expected. I am not sure if I am a big fan of the sound. I prefer a bit beefier guitar sound for my crust. The vocals are pretty high up in the mix and could very well turn you off. They are high pitched and screamed as if the singer's voice is about to be broken. I am reminded of Greece’s astro-grinders Dephosphorus. It’s an acquired taste, I guess. I kind of dig it.
Hiljaisuus did not turn my world upside down like the best records can. It is an entertaining album nonetheless. It is also one of those albums I doubt I will return to very often, but it will make me keep an eye out for future releases from Mustasuo.
