Originally written by Jason Jordan.
Red Harvest have been releasing material since the early ‘90s, and from my understanding, they periodically undergo stylistic changes that result in each album sounding different than its predecessors. Still, though most of their discography can be comfortably filed under the industrial metal tab, A Greater Darkness isn’t radically similar to Internal Punishment Programs, which brought too little to the table. AGD, however, is more varied, experimental, and likeable.
The Norwegians utilize razor-y riffs, gruff vocals, and enough synth effects to go around, so their delivery hasn’t shifted a great deal, as “Antidote” is quick to assert. Like their fellow countrymen Dimmu Borgir, Red Harvest incorporate orchestral instrumentation into songs such as “Antidote,” “Mouth of Madness,” et cetera, but rely on keyboards to produce those passages instead of real-life players. The peak of A Greater Darkness is “I Sweat W.O.M.D.” – a middle-paced tune that sounds like slo-mo Meshuggah during its verses and leaves a lasting impression. Other mid-paced songs such as “Beyond the Limits of Physical Xperience,” “WarThemes,” and “Proprioception” don’t work nearly as well since they’re overly sluggish, and become monotonous as a result of occupying slots on the last half of this 10-track album. Plus, at over ten minutes, “Distorted Eyes” is twice the length of most peers, which tests the attention span perhaps too much. Furthermore, 51 minutes of this kind of material demands a level of concentration that many listeners are simply unwilling to exert.
Admirable (or aggravating, depending on how one looks at it) is the fact that Red Harvest reinvent themselves with every album, despite the prospect of losing a few followers in doing so. Here, on A Greater Darkness, the slight alterations essentially make the record. Fans of Control Human Delete, Scorngrain, V:28, and other electronic-heavy groups need apply, especially if searching for a slower alternative, but also, and most importantly, those same fans should not expect brilliance or anything remotely close.
