Search - Paik :: Monster of the Absolute

You won't know where you are...

Nathan B. Hyatt | San Francisco | 09/06/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Part horror-film soundtrack, part meditation on the inherent ironies in pursuing the simple life, and part end-times mantra, Monster of the Absolute is about embracing death and finding the life within it. Bass melodies buried under the white noise of dissonant guitar loops, a drummer who hits things with regularity that most drummers don't even have in their kits, Paik are never afraid to chart their own territory, and while each release has seen a significant step beyond the previous, with Monster of the Absolute Paik creates the sonic collage they have always been striving for.



Rhythms range from the dirge-like to nearly booty-shaking on one track, which is new ground for Paik. Solid bass playing is often the only familiar element for the uninitiated, while the guitarist churns out noise like flaming whips scourging the backs of hellhounds pressed into Satan's army, or black iron trains chugging to the underworld with their latest haul of souls. The drummer is the most flamboyant and dynamic of the anti-rock trio, signaling your arrival at the end of time with cymbals and crashes that announce the opening of gates you'd wish forever sealed. In addition to that harsh metalwork, the drums also maintain a steady pulse that energizes and drives the wall of noise atop it.



Paik have turned the art of dissonance guitars into a meaningful and often triumphant wail, and they manage to achieve more with their strings than human voices ever could, no matter how tormented they might be.

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