Artist: Fragarak
Album: Crypts Of Dissimulation
Label: Independent
Mixed and Mastered By: Rahul Mehalwal at C6 Studios
Release Date: May 5, 2013
It’s always exciting to review a band’s debut release because you know that you’ll get to hear something totally new, something fresh; and given that the band is from your hometown, the curiosity and thrill will always be there. Fragarak is a five piece Progressive Death Metal band from New Delhi, a city which was almost absent from the metal map of India until last year when we witnessed some really talented bands like 1833 AD and Skyharbor just conquering the scene out of nowhere; kinda makes me feel proud.
I saw Fragarak live last year at a local gig and they were pretty much the show stopper that night. Starting off in 2012, the band derives its name and depiction from ‘Fragarach’, the sword of Manannan mac Lir and later, Lugh Lamfada from Irish mythology. It is said to place the wind at the user’s command and could cut through any shield or wall, and had a piercing wound from which no man could recover. “The unquestioned system, that we are a part of, forges a deceptive shield. To question the authority that steps on us, to retaliate against the lies we are forced to live with, to cultivate a much needed shamble – is what Fragarak’s music represents.”
The band’s music is a striking assortment of heavy progressions and summoning melodies laden with a tad bit of technicality, ferocious vocals and mind-blowing bass and drum lines. Their songs travel from outlandish harmonies, dismissing bass lines and some really captivating lyrics, the kind which any music lover would simply adore. With Supratim Sen on vocals, Kartikeya Sinha on bass, Arpit Pradhan on guitars, Ruben Franklin on guitars and Sagar Siddhanti on drums, Fragarak release their magnificent and probably one of the better debuts one would ever witness, Crypts Of Dissimulation.
The album kicks in with the frenzied clean intro of ‘Savor The Defiance’ and gives you a forty minute journey of six beautifully constructed songs. ‘Savor The Defiance’, being a poignant track, consists of many harrowing melodies laid with heavy progressions and agonizing harmonies. The track has been impeccably tailored with a lot of transitioning sections, connected with well-crafted bridges and one can notice the brilliance in musicianship as he/she listens to the remarkable bass lines and splendid drum fills along with powerful grunts.
The album gets a bit faster and heavier with the track ‘Insurgence’. Starting off with the heavy intro riff, arpeggios on the augmented scale, it is full of cult death metal progressions which would simply force you into headbanging. Once again the bass lines are just incredible, connecting the melodic portion of the song to the heavy one with a celestial and bizarre interlude. The track ends with an astonishing solo before moving onto another mid tempo paced heavy yet tuneful track ‘Effacing The Esotery’. With ‘Effacing The Esotery’, the sound turns more mystic and occult at the same time is pretty heavy. The drums have been nicely laid on the tracks; Sagar exhibits nice footwork and certainly elevates the feel of the song with some amazing fills.
‘Dissimulation – An Overture’ is an instrumental containing of some surreal work on acoustic guitars, starting with western classical sections to more eccentric and dark bits as we proceed towards the end. ‘Cryptic Convulsion’ is another heavy track on the album which is comparatively murkier and darker than the others. The song almost attains a black metal nuance after a minute of its start, offering some commanding heavy riffs laden with chaotic harmonies. In fact, the outro solo is reminiscent of works of their fellow band 1833 AD, a black metal band.
The album ends with another outstanding ambient acoustic instrumental, ‘Psalm Of Deliverance’. The production of the album is just great. The tracks possess a nice amount of dynamics and the instruments have been panned aptly. I mean not only is the song-writing and composing awesome, the quality of recording is good as well; what more could you possibly want from an album.
The variety offered to us throughout the album and quality of composition just reflects the amount of talent that these guys possess. ‘Crypts Of Dissimulation’ is one of the best records and Fragarak is one of the best progressive bands you’ll hear from the country. Do check out this masterpiece from them!
Listen to ‘Crypts Of Dissimulation’ here.
