New vocalist, new approach... Clock Paradox hail from Oulu, Finland, with their third demo CD. The band's progressiveness has always been unpredictable, and this time isn't
any different. The band have grown from a quartet to a quintet, as Antti Karhu (also in Depth Beyond One's) stepped off the microphone and concentrates only on the guitar.
New vocalist Jouni Koskela, who is known as prog thrash/death band Abysmalia's mastermind.
Generally, Clock Paradox's building blocks are the same as always: sometimes disharmonic death metal, thrash metal, progressive music, and a pinch of jazz. 'F21' is a dark
instrumental with Opeth-esque melody weaving and lovely rhythmic plays, which has always been the band's trademark. 'Footprints' made me drop my jaw, as is began to blast
from the speakers. This is the heaviest stuff from the band to date, but still playing around with rhythms and some dark melodies. The new voice is barbaric and growls 'n'
screams are varied, but the clean vocals are gone. The band can shift from brutal blasting to groovy playing without effort.
The demo continues on brutal gear with oppressive 'Phantom Pain', which includes churning riffage and turning rhythms. Jazzy start of 'For the Unity We Breath' is only a
short breather before cruel darkness somewhat in vein of Opeth and such acts. The closer 'The Perfect Canvas' is vile blasting with fantastically catchy chorus to boot. My
favourite song on the album, and bond to come one of my all-time classics!!! The guitar solos are not warp-speed fretboard antics, but have more freeform, more soulful, feel
to them. The sound is heavy and vibrant with organic manner (e.g. hearing fingers moving on guitar strings), and works perfectly for this kind of music.
This might be easiest Clock Paradox demo for listeners thus far. The music is still warped, but it's the compositions that are much tighter than in the past. Still, those
who want 1-2-3-4 rock should steer away from this beast. This is the first time when the band's release can be filed under death metal, and style shall be progressive, just
as expected.
Reviewed by Lane
01/25/2011 23:32
"The Five Precepts" is a cool achievement now adding a death metal brutality, but not of the Swedish kind, to the proceedings, of the modern jumpy semi-technical type. The songs are very jumpy with weird sterile riff-structures not far from mid-period Meshuggah again, but there is also a nice spacey feel to the guitar sound echoing Atheist at their prime ("For the Unity We Breathe", which is an outstanding technical death/thrasher). Twisted groovy technicality is also served on the final "The Perfect Canvas", and as a whole this small effort stands for the band's magnum opus, and would finally catapult the guys into the full-length circle.
70/100
One could call it ambitious, but this is already the third promo work of Clock Paradox from Finland, since they formed in 2009. The first and second work have been
reviewed before and seemed to have made a fairly good impression. The band is completely self-reliant. The production is in the hands of the newly attracted singer
Jouni Koskela and the artwork is employed by bassist Timo Tyynismaa. I must admit that it does show on both accounts that it was not handled by a pro, but I always have
a soft spot for bands that try to remove all the obstacles themselves.
The production is way too soft to be taken fully serious. So if you got a band of your own, always listen back the material on a car radio or something, in a studio
everything sounds heavy and cool, but after the final mastering little remains sometimes. In all honesty, I share the same experience. But once you pass the barrier of
the meager sound, some special features pass by indeed. The musicians are of a pretty good level and they play death metal in a classical way, but with they throw in
some surprising elements too. I wonder what they will sound like with their art in the hands of a professional and provided that the recommendations are worked on, they
still have my attention.
Ramon
Ultraääni - demo of the week
(reviewed at Finnish radio show 3.2.2011)
3/7
A new year, a new approach, a new singer . or to be precise, Clock Paradox's third demo, The Five Precepts, was released already in the very end of 2010, and the
musical approach isn't completely new, even though altered a fair bit.
After a rather sinister instrumental, which works as some sort of intro, there's a little stop before one of the rawest forms of death metal is blowing up in your face.
The lack of a real transition between the first and the second track sounds perhaps a bit botched, although the intro and rest of the demo otherwise do form a good
unity, in my opinion. And "unity" is also the keyword when one is talking about The Five Precepts compared to Clock Paradox's previous work, Promosexual 2009; while the
latter was overloaded with (often too) many different things, music styles and influences, everything was narrowed down to more or less one thing on TFP. There might
still be something reminiscent of progressive, but on the whole Clock Paradox pursue a clear-cut course of staying on the death metal side of music. Also, the vocals,
which had been incredibly varied on the previous two demos, are limited to screaming and growling this time and were taken care of by a new singer, Jouni Koskela
(Abysmalia). All this makes The Five Percepts a very uniform release on the a-bit-more-extreme end of metal, yet also somewhat one-sided.
As to grant an insight into my own life again, I once had a roommate that was using her stereo equipment as an alarm clock. For quite some time I assumed it was the
construction work from the other building, but soon that work was done and the noise was still there every morning. I know it wasn't this demo that was spinning in her
CD player, but it could have been.
Socke
20.02.2011
Not sure if this is a demo, or an E.P., or something. It's self-released, for sure, but the sound quality is pretty good and the production speaks of at least some time in the
studio and not of an one-afternoon-do-it-fast recording. So, on that front, at least, Clock Paradox get one point: this little piece of music sounds pretty good.
But, hey, as one of you GD faithfuls might point out, also boy-bands of yore had good production, right? But their music was shit. So, what about Clock-guys music, huh? Well, on
the surface, one might call this prog death and he won't be off the mark, either. The music is complex, rhythmically convoluted, technically demanding and dense: there is nary a
moment during these five songs that there's not a shitload of shit happening and if one wants to decipher everything that, say, the rhythm guitar or the bass is doing, one has
to listen to the songs repeatedly.
Usually, for me, this is a warning to stay away from such music, as I actively hate this super-dense, nigh-incomprehensible strain of death metal (with a few exceptions, of
course, but you get my meaning...). But in the case of Clock Paradox, I found myself actually enjoying the music - a lot. Even though I do not belong to the caste of cognoscenti
who can easily discern the influences of these Finns, I found myself referencing Meshuggah - in a very simplified manner - plus a bit of Gorguts, as things that the band
probably spent a lot of time listening to, along with a bit of Dysrhythmia's math-y complexity.
As I.ve already said about Jack Slater's record, "The Five Precepts" contains songs that are groovy and memorable, with the complexity and prog tendencies actually working as
enhancements of the already interesting riffing. Another plus is the drum sound which is so fucking lively and organic that I was hooked from the first moment I listened to it.
On the minus side, now, the vocals (a raspy scream/growl combo) are really nothing to write home about, although they really don.t mess up the songs. Anyway, to cap things off,
this is complex enough to tickle the pleasure centers of tech-death freaks all around and approachable enough to be enjoyable by us non-math-inclined metalheadz. Generally, it's
pretty good and I grace it with a...
7,5: Well, fuck us with a golden dildo, this shit is actually good. Color us impressed.
21/02/11 || Khlysty
Oululainen Clock Paradox -viisikko on ollut kasassa vasta vuodesta 2009, mutta lykkäsivät viime vuoden lopussa pihalle jo kolmannen promonsa. Kiitettävää aktiivisuutta ja
mikäs siinä kun jälki on näin laadukasta. The Five Precepts on viiden kappaleen verran death metallia, pienellä progressiivisella irveellä ja isokeuhkoisella ärjyjällä
varustettua, pääosin keskitempoista tylytystä.
Meshuggah kuuluu ajoittain lävitse tietyissä musiikillisissa ratkaisuissa, mutta bändi on suodattanut sen oman filtterinsä lävitse sen verran hyvin ettei muita bändejä
suoranaisesti tule mieleen. vain itse tyylilaji ja sen eri variaatioita. Silkan jyräämisen lisäksi mukana on maulla lisättyä melodiaa tuomaan lisämaustetta, mutta mitään
melodeathia tämä ei kuitenkaan ole. Saatteessa julistetaan uskoa old school death metalille, mutta omiin korviin tämä on enemmänkin modernimpaa laitaa.
Niin tai näin, varsin itsensä kuuloisen äänitteen yhtye on saattanut maailmaan, vieläpä omin voimin äänitettynä/miksattuna/masteroituna, mistä aina plussaa. Enkä näe mitään
syytä miksi tämä ei olisi jo levyllä. Bändi on siihen täysin valmis.
Jos progehtava, äkäisen keskitempoinen deathmetal on sinun juttusi niin tarkista tämä.
21.02.2011, Tuomo Hohtari
Oululainen Clock Paradox pistää jo kolmatta pikkukiekkoa pihalle puolentoista vuoden sisään. Hyökkäyssuunnitelmat luodaan edelleen modernin deathin oppien
pohjalta, ja kuolotus tarjotaan vielä erittäin brutaalina, sekä ehdottoman kosketinvapaana.
Yhtyettä on aiemmin verrattu mm. Strapping Yound Ladiin, eikä varhainen Opethkaan tästä rytyytyksestä kovin kauas jää, sanoisin. Tuore vokalisti Jouni Koskela
ärjyy, karjuu ja puhkuu kunnioitettavalla voimalla, ja kitaristikaksikko Antti Karhu & Jyrki Hiltunen viskaavat keitokseen pari mehukasta riffiä, mutta siitä
huolimatta yrityksestä jää puuttumaan yhä se todellinen voima. Clock Paradoxia kuunnellessa mieleen nousevat ensimmäisinä vaikutteet, eikä se ole koskaan
hyvästä. Tukevat soundit ja napakka yhteen soitto pelastavat paljon, mutta persoonallisuus on se mitä tässä jää kaipaamaan.
Mika Roth
(28.02.2011)
Okay so this new demo from Finnish band CLOCK PARADOX is based around the usual death metal formula, but it certainly isn.t for the meek minded or the folks that are more used to
the commercial leanings of modern day melodic death metal, no THE FIVE PRECEPTS is quite brutal and filled to the brim with unrelenting aggression. Apparently the band has a new
singer for this, their third demo release and I haven.t heard what the previous singer sounded like, but this new guy seems to be a great for the band and I.m sure they will want to
stick with him. CLOCK PARADOX take a bit of a progressive approach to the death metal formula and also add some stuff that would probably be better described as almost math metal or
certainly tech death.
Music-wise I think these guys are onto something here because the songwriting quality is very high and each member seems technically more than capable of running rings around their
chosen instrument. The drums have that real tech death feel to them and at times the speed the kick drums is played at almost sounds like a programmed drum machine, but I have it on
good word that no such thing was used in the recording process. The bass is always very busy and is a bit of secret weapon here as a lot of death metal has simplistic bass lines
that just follow the beat, whereas on THE FIVE PRECEPTS the bass work is more in line with what you would expect to hear from a progressive metal act. The guitars are also on fire
throughout the entire demo and the effects they use are a lot less muddy than a lot of other death metal guitarists which really works in their favor.
I do have a few complaints though, two of which are understandable given the fact that this release is just a demo but one that is something I have complained about a lot in the
past. The two cosmetic problems I have is firstly the production, which as I said is understandable for a demo but really isn.t doing the band any favors. Secondly the artwork is
really, really bad. I believe that the cover art was created by the band.s bass guitarist which shows that his bass playing is certainly much better than his graphic design skills.
Once again I realize that with a demo the band wanted to avoid any un-necessary costs, but really, a couple of hundred bucks would have gotten them some much better artwork. Righto,
so that.s the two things I am willing to overlook due to the fact that THE FIVE PRECEPTS, so that leaves one more gripe.what is then?... Well, once again we have a band putting an
instrumental intro at the start of a five track disk, something that has been a constant annoyance to me for a long time now. It may sound trivial, but it.s really just an excuse to
make discs look longer than they are and I would have rather just have the four proper songs and leave aside the intro.
As it stands, THE FIVE PRECEPTS should be sufficient enough for CLOCK PARADOX to garner some label interest, but in the meantime if you feel like checking them out this demo is
available for free legal download straight off the band's own website so you can't lose when it's free really can you?
Written By ZeeZee
Rating : 6/10
16.03.2011
Ahkera Clock Paradox jatkaa monipuolista möykkäänsä. Tällä kertaa alkavat hahmottua musiikilliset suuntaviivatkin selkeämmin. Kiinnostava biisinrakennustyyli tuo mieleen
eräänlaisen Opeth/Meshuggah -kombinaation, joka on pakotettu menemään vähän suorempaan, vaikkeivät nämä omalla tavalla tekniset riffitkään aina siihen taipuisi. Vaikka
yksityiskohtia on hevosille syötettäväksi asti, bändin musiikki vyöryy yhtenä synkkänä möykkynä ja säilyttää kiinnostuksen sellaisenaankin. Päähänhän tästä sekamelskasta
ei meinaa jäädä juuri mitään, mutta eipä porukan taitoa voi kyseenalaistaa millään tapaa. Hulluuden ja nerouden kuuluisalla rajapinnalla tässä taiteillaan.
Aadolf Virtanen
Groove Thrashers Clock Paradox caused a stir in 2010 with their third EP 'The Five Precepts', collecting Finnish brutality with a bounty of dark aura and a sense
of musical taste, the quintet from Oulu signal a change in atmospherics with a delicious delicatessen of meaty drumming, flavoured vocals and fat-laden riffs and
solos, all in all making the perfect buffet for any listener. Clock Paradox are potentially labelled as Finland's answer to Brazil's Cavalera Conspiracy.
[7.5] RHYS STEVENSON
(Apr 23, 2011)
The best things come in threes. In the end of 2010 Clock Paradox - one of my most-loved Finnish newcomer bands - released its third demo output called "The Five Precepts".
With a new singer and five new songs they try something like a "new start" and in my honest opinion they fail - on a high level.
The melodies and innovative ideas I really loved on the first and second output were blown away by Death Metal riffing with a progressive touch. Where on the last demos
memorability dominated the musical work of Clock Paradox, on "The Five Precepts" now heaviness and Metal attitudes have priority.
New Singer Jouni Koskela screams and grunts like there was no tomorrow, but for me that's never enough. I miss the clean, catchy voice of Antti Karhu that pleased the ears in
the past. I miss the whacky ideas that separated Clock Paradox from the Finnish Metal swamp. And I miss the variety that was given on the last outputs.
Please don't misunderstand my critic on "The Five Precepts": Certainly the best things come still in threes and also in 2010 Clock Paradox created great Metal music. All five
guys did a great job. But in my opinion most magnificent music needs more than only brutality or heaviness.
For the future I hope that Clock Paradox will have a look to the past and remember the magnificent catchy progressive music they have created... in a symbiosis with their actual
aggressive style I think they can create something really outstanding.
And now my CD player is fed on Clock Paradox's "Demo 2009".
6,5 / 10
Thomas Krampe - 17.05.2011
Oulun pojat piinaavat pitkään, ennen kuin päästävät uuden laulajansa ääneen. Bändi vaihtoi vokalistia heti edellisen demon jälkeen ja uusi laulaja istuu ryhmään erinomaisen hyvin. Hänen
äänensä tekee hyvää yhtyeen kappaleille, jotka ovat piirun verran mutkikkaampaa deathmetallia. CP hyödyntää laajalla rintamalla progevivahteita ja ainakin Opethin tyyppinen ilmaisu
vilahtelee ahkeraan bändin biiseissä kuitenkaan jättämättä liian vahvaa muistijälkeä ruotsalaisbändin tuotannosta. Yhtyeen sävellyksen ovat monisyisiä ja rönsyileviäkin, mutta
taitavasti suunniteltujen sovitusten ansiosta bändi hallitsee kappaleidensa sisäiset jännitteet ja jopa kasvattavat niiden tunnelatausta. Oikeastaan CP:n palaset loksahtavat uudella
demolla kohdalleen sujuvasti, ja bändi on nyt sellaisessa kunnossa, ettei siltä voi enää odottaa kuin lisää hyviä ja ehkä jopa parempiakin kappaleita.
Marko Säynekoski
Huh huh! Oululaisen Clock Paradoxin teknisvaikutteinen death metal meinaa ottaa toimiakseen oikein kunnolla! Useaan eri suuntaan mielikuvia vievä promojulkaisu yllättää
valmiudellaan ja muistuttaa siitä, kuinka tämänkaltaista musiikkia tulee tehdä.
Vasta parin vuoden ikäinen bändi kuulostaa valmiimmalta kuin moni samalla saralla operoiva vanhempi bändi. Menosta tulee suurimmilta osilta mieleen hieman äkäisempi ja
vähemmän romanttinen versio Opethista, eikä vähiten yhtyeen vokalistin Jouni Koskelan loistavan laulutulkinnan ansiosta. Sekä syvä murina että korkeampi kärinä ovat
ensiluokkaista tasoa, eikä muunkaan bändin suoritusta sovi väheksyä. Näillä jätkillä on homma todella tiukasti hallussaan.
Hyvillä soundeilla silattu julkaisu on siinä määrin väkevää kamaa, että luulisi jo levy-yhtiöidenkin kiinnostuvan Clock Paradoxin kunnianhimoisesta ja ammattitaitoisesta
meiningistä. Kunhan yhtye onnistuu jatkossa leipomaan aikaiseksi muutaman todellisen iskuraidan alkaa Clock Paradox olemaan kovaa valuuttaa jo maailmanlaajuisellakin
tasolla.
Pitäkäähän tätä bändiä silmällä!
Hyvää: Kovatasoinen ja juuri oikealla tavalla rupinen meininki.
Kehitettävää: Raakaa treeniä, muutama todella kova kappale ja homma alkaa olla kunnolla asemissaan.
Lähettänyt Joni Juutilainen
22.08.2011
(erikoismaininta)
Jo ennen ensimmäisiä säveliä on mielleyhtymät vedetty Opethin suuntaan, vaikka eipä tuo naapurien metallimonsteri ole näin raskaita päivä
nähnyt enää pariin levyyn. Vähemmän yllättäen Oulusta ponnistava Clock Paradox soittaa siis progressiivisuuteen taipuvaista death metallia
vanhan koulun soundia kunnioittaen. Missä ja miten tuo progressiivisuus tarkasti ottaen kuuluu, sitä en osaa sanoa, sillä .progressiivinen
death metalli. on viime vuosina edistynyt jo siinä määrin, että tuodakseen soundiin jotain .uutta. pitäisi varmaankin mäiskiä kuollutta
hevosta studiossa.
No, edistyksellistä tai ei, Clock Paradoxilla on homma kivasti hallussa. Erikoiset tahtilajit, mukavasti rönsyilevät väliriffit sekä eläväiset
soolonlurautukset tuovat musiikkiin sen .proge.-mausteen, kärinän ja murinan välillä vaihtelevat laulut puolestaan death metallin, vaikkei
tässä ennen viimeistä kappaletta mitenkään koville tuplabasarikierroksille päästäkään, silloinkin menee hölköttelyt enemmän rässin ja grindin
suuntan.
Mainiosti etenevä, luonnollisesti kasvava demo, josta monet levyttävätkin bändit voisivat ottaa mallia. .The Five Precepts. on myös hyvä
esimerkki levystä, josta ei jää mitään erikoista mieleen, mutta toisaalta sitä ei edes kaipaa; musiikki toimii juuri tällaisena,
moniulotteisena, alati rönsyilevänä kuin syysmetsän lehvästö. Jos jotain, niin hieman vielä lisää dynamiikkaa biiseihin; intron kaltaista
kevyempää himmailua soisi mielellään melko tasaisesti jyräävän materiaalin väliin tovin jos toisenkin.
Jaakko Teittinen, syyskuu 29, 2011
Harvasta bändistä voi hyvällä omallatunnolla käyttää termiä progressivinen death metal. Oulun Clock Paradox täyttää kuitenkin tämän määritelmän likipitäen täydellisesti. Kolmannella
promojulkaisullaan yhtye soi häkellyttävän voimallisesti, idearikkaasti ja ennen kaikkea puhuttelevan persoonallisin sävyin. Hieno instrumentaali F21 johdattaa neljään rankempaan,
laulettuun raitaan. Matalalla möyrivät vireet ja rumpali Jani Kuorikosken millintarkka työskentely vihjailevat modernimmastakin metallista, mutta vokalisti Jouni Koskelan raaka
korina ja rääkynät pitävät kokonaisuuden kuitenkin selkeästi musiikin rujommalla puolella. Clock Paradoxin soitossa on ihailtavaa dynamiikkaa ja plveilevuutta, ilman teennäisyyttä
tai pankonomaista venkoilua. Tunnetta ja teknisyyttä tarjotaankin tässä osoitteessa juuri oikeassa suhteessa.
Vaikka nauhoitteen viimeinen kappale The Perfect Canvas ei aivan neljän ensimmäisen raidan nerokkuuden tasolle ylläkään, ei The Five Preceptsin laatua käy kiistäminen. Clock Paradox
osoittaa työnäytteellään hallitsevansa niin instrumenttinsa kuin sävellyspuolensakin esimerkillisesti. Yhtye on löytänyt tyylinsä ja pitäytyy siinä hienosti läpi koko promon. Mitäpä
tässä selittelemään, Clock Paradox on valmis paketti! Levy-yhtiön setinä ja täteinä olisin jo bändin yhteystietoja onkimassa.
Markus Makkonen
Clock Paradox, a Finnish band, formed only three years ago, have wasted no time in developing their slightly off-kilter blend of Groove and Progressive Tech-Death Metal. Their third demo-EP The Five Precepts stirs in several influences, with a new vocalist at the helm bringing further change from their previous groove metal sound.
The band take a risky approach, kicking off the EP with the instrumental F21, featuring a mix of Opethian and Meshuggah-like riffing from Hiltunen and Karhu (The Man-Eating Tree). It's a mid-tempo affair with some strong guitar work, and the rhythm section of Tyynismaa on bass and Kuorikoski on drums do their job, although their limelight comes later in the EP. Confusingly, any pretense at the band being an instrumental group is instantly dispelled in Footprints, when Koskela's (Abysmalia) roar emerges under a Death Metal rumble reminiscent of Gorguts and Cynic. Within the first two minutes, the vocalist throws out a mixture of Pyrrhon-like screams and growls, both of which kick ass, along with some receded spoken-word which is less to my taste. They have, however, now dropped the cleans which Karhu provided, which only adds to the old-school feel.
Phantom Pain sports a cool melodic line along with generally strong musicianship, when it's allowed to breathe from Koskela's unrelenting vocals. For The Unity We Breathe opens with a relaxing jazzy Nami-like melody, before a headnodding groove sets in. This song feels the most jam-packed, with many ideas running into each other, and it takes a couple of spins to comprehend where Clock Paradox are going with it. The Groove/Djent influence is undeniable, particularly in the disjointed polyrhythms of closer The Perfect Canvas, which also integrates some Hardcore shouts, old-school DM drumming and a bass solo right at the end to top things off.
It seems Clock Paradox haven't completely found their style yet, but what they have created here is a mad melting pot of Prog Death and Groove Metal. The Five Precepts is a great EP in itself, but more importantly it marks a step up in material, paving the way to an even stronger release next time. It's always encouraging to discover bands who progress in quality with each subsequent release, be it full-lengths or demos, learning from mistakes to release stronger material. There are still a couple of correction points, particularly in production, but it is Finnish after all and they can do no wrong with Metal.
Following this little link, you can download the tracks from the website (along with the band's discog), or stream it below.
My Grade: 6.5/10
Buy this when:
* you love oldschool Death Metal such as Gorguts, Prog like older Opeth and a touch of Meshuggah
* you have a penchant for Finnish bands
* C'MON GUYS, IT'S FREE!
Posted on Fri, 06/04/2012 by Angel