Sochkhere - Domestic Disturbances Vol. 1

In what can only really be described as eerie, dark, and gloomy comes along a Danish act by the name of Sochkhere. I'm not really sure if that name is supposed to mean something, but my investigative tactics left me with a cliffhanger. However, this album is weird in all senses of the word, but a sorta good, sorta bad kinda weird. I don't think that necessarily describes exactly how one, as long as that one is myself, should feel about the album, so let me get a little more down in the dirt.

For starters, let me tell you what I liked about the album. And, I suppose I can begin by saying that I loved the vocals on the album. Always distorted, always sounding like a deep pitched demon trying to express his feelings to a psychiatrist, and always giving off a negative vibe. In other words, they perfectly fit the mood of the songs. Hedge did a fantastic job showcasing the talents behind the vocals presented alongside the noise found within the song, It was pretty cool.

However, about halfway through the album, it changes to a more minimalistic approach starting with selfinflicted. It's a very odd and somewhat disturbing song. As the title suggests, we are listening to someone most likely harming themselves for some sort of sick pleasure. It's a drone song, though, having mainly one note with the sounds of a man breathing in ecstasy as the slapping sounds in the song represent some sort of pain being inflicted upon himself.

I suppose one of the only songs that I really had a problem with would be the final song on the album, attic. Whereas the minimal approach to the album worked before by sewing a story in between the notes, this song just tends to bore. Eventually, the song just turns into noise that appears and disappears repeatedly with an annoying and repeating loop. It was a horrible way to end the album.

Needless to say, the beginning and body of this album was pretty damned good. Although the end left more to be desired, it still didn't destroy the album for me entirely. I'll just have to remember that the next time I listen to this album, I'll have to remember to take the last song off the playlist to have an enjoyable listening experience. Jan 30 2014