Mekigah

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Mekigah
General information
origin Melbourne , Australia
Genre (s) Until 2012:
Doom Metal , Symphonic Metal , Dark Rock
Since 2014:
Doom Metal , Extreme Metal , Post-Industrial
founding 2008
Current occupation
Drums, percussion, vocals, bass, guitar, synthesizer
 Vis Ortis
former members
Keyboards, bass, guitar, vocals
 Crypt

Mekigah is a progressive metal and post-industrial band founded in 2008 , which currently consists of the musician Vis Ortis.

history

Vis Ortis was active in various musical groups before Mekigah was founded. The Huonville- born musician had recorded releases with some of these bands in Melbourne . Often these recordings were mastered and produced by Kryptus . Ortis and Kryptus then stayed in contact and exchanged ideas about the possibility of a joint project and the potential direction of such a project. From this idea Mekigah arose after Orti's move to Melbourne. With The Serpent's Kiss, both worked on a debut album without making demo recordings beforehand or trying to get a contract with a label. The album was created as a concept album that tells the story of the biblical Eve after her banishment from the Garden of Eden , and was arranged with a large number of guest musicians and singers. Meanwhile speaking passages emphasize the conceptual character of the album. Despite being self-published, The Serpent's Kiss received international attention and was highly praised by critics.

With The Necessary Evil in 2012, the second album of the duo appeared. Once again, the musicians used various guest musicians and singers to make the album a reality. Ortis called the underlying concept the 'necessary evil' named in the album title. Against this background, the importance of evil for a balanced life is named as a red thread . The texts illuminate partly sarcastically and partly seriously ideas of things that are described or excused as 'necessary evil'. The album was highly praised by reviewers and the band was certified as having "outgrown themselves in direct comparison to their debut". In later interviews Ortis stated that he saw the album as a product of the times and as such valued it, but would not produce it again in the same form.

While the Necessary Evil was being recorded , Ortis began writing the third studio album. Ortis sought an exchange with Kryptus in order to come to an understanding with him about the future musical direction of Mekigah. While Ortis wanted the music to develop more intuitively and spontaneously, Kryptus preferred an organized writing process. As a consequence of this and other creative differences regarding the future musical style, Kryptus left Mekigah, whereupon Ortis continued the project alone. The third album Litost was released as the first Mekigah album via a label and was released in 2014 on Aesthetic Death Records . Ortis once again involved various guest musicians in the production of the album. The album has been described as a raw and experimental counterpart to its predecessors. Despite the stylistic change, Litost was highly praised by critics.

While recording Litost , Ortis wrote material that seemed too experimental for Litost's musical concept . Based on these pieces Ortis began to put together the fourth album Autexousious , which was also released in 2017 via Aesthetic Death . Lyrically, Ortis placed a focus on cryptic self-analytical texts whose conceptual framework thematized the principle of free will questioning. The album was recorded in two recording sessions six months apart. Reviewers received the album mostly positively. Autexousious was highly praised as a mix of avant-garde music and extreme metal .

style

The style played by Mekigah is considered difficult to categorize. The music was subject to constant change which divided the products of the project into different phases, but could not be assigned to a clear style. The first two albums are considered more structured and song-oriented. The following releases are considered darker, less refined but more destructive releases with an overwhelming surround sound.

The debut is categorized as a “metallic folk and metal musical” as well as a “rock opera”. The style of the debut is commonly discussed as a crossover of different musical genres. " Doom -, Symphonic -, Dark - and Gothic Metal " are used as well as " Prog , Ambient , Folk and Classic ". As a comparison, mixtures between My Dying Bride and Dead Can Dance as well as Mercyful Fate and Enya are tried. The album is "kept very melodic" with a solemn and melancholy, playful mood. The female clear vocals, however, are “with a classic touch”, while the male “has a folk soul”. The instrumental arrangements "play [...] between a kind of symphonic fragility and gloomy, almost sacred arrangements". Nevertheless, the album is characterized by “metallic hardness”.

The second album The Necessary Evil is mostly considered darker compared to its predecessor. This time, in addition to the stylistic terms Doom and Gothic Metal, Dark Ambient and Black Metal were named as influencing factors. The album was compared to Type O Negative due to its slow and orchestral orientation . The album is still considered to be guitar and riff oriented . The song is deeper than its predecessor and has a sacred feel . The melody is slow and threatening. The use of synthesizers is judged to be “theatrical, symphonic sound art that sometimes even exudes a slightly morbid character”. With Bloodlust a piece is included, which is stylistically based on Black Metal. Ortis confirmed the influence of Black Metal and referred in particular to groups “that have developed away from traditional sound, such as ULVER , DÖDHEIMSGARD etc., or later blasphemous things from MAYHEM's offshoot AVA INFERI .” Negated an influence from Gothic but he.

The third album Litost is seen as a radical departure from the structured orchestral sound of the first two releases. The music is categorized as a mix of Doom, Noise , Industrial , Black Metal, Ambient and Classical. The album is compared with representatives of industrial metal such as early Godflesh , PHOBOS or Skin Chamber . Litost is primarily an instrumental album that conveys a helpless mood. On the album, synthetically cold and gloomy soundscapes are blended with dark ambient, martial industrial and neoclassic to one unit. The guitar playing was present, however, in the background, while the atmospheric elements appeared dominant.

Autexousious is again awarded a further stylistic development. Stylistically, it is considered an avant-garde mixture of ambient, black metal and doom metal. According to the reviewers, playing the guitar is being brought more to the fore than its predecessor, and extreme forms of Doom Metal are being suggested in discussions. The vocals mainly consist of guttural bawling that is often associated with Black Metal. Clear vocals are only occasionally presented. Ambient passages, acoustic guitars and spoken text passages complement the overall sound of the album but do not dominate it. According to the label, the album remains slow and hard.

Discography

  • 2010: The Serpent's Kiss (album, self-published)
  • 2012: The Necessary Evil (album, self-published)
  • 2014: Litost (Album, Aesthetic Death)
  • 2017: Autexousious (Album, Aesthetic Death)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e Matthias: Interview with VisOrtis about The Necessary Evil. metal.de, accessed on August 16, 2017 .
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h Mike Liassides: Interview with Mekigah. doom-metal.com, accessed August 16, 2017 .
  3. ↑ a b c Matthias: Mekigah: The Serpent's Kiss. metal.de, accessed on August 16, 2017 .
  4. ^ A b Ian C Stewart: Mekigah: The Serpent's Kiss. Autoreverse To Infinity, accessed August 16, 2017 .
  5. ↑ Mekigah: The Serpent's Kiss. The Pit of the Damned, accessed August 16, 2017 .
  6. ↑ a b c d e f mekigah. Aesthetic Death, accessed August 16, 2017 .
  7. ^ A b c Matthias: Mekigah: The Necessary Evil. metal.de, accessed on August 16, 2017 .
  8. ^ A b Steven Reid: Mekigah: The Necessary Evil. Sea Of Tranquility. Retrieved August 16, 2017 .
  9. ↑ chris: Mekigah: Litost. Anvil Mag, accessed August 17, 2017 .
  10. ^ A b Marc Schallmaier: Mekigah: Litost. My Revelations, accessed August 17, 2017 .
  11. ↑ a b c wonderboxmetal: Mekigah: Litost. Wonderbox Metal, accessed August 17, 2017 .
  12. ↑ a b c Chaim Drishner: Mekigah: Litost. (No longer available online.) Doom-metal.com, archived from the original on January 17, 2018 ; accessed on August 17, 2017 .
  13. ↑ a b Mekigah: Autexousious. Flight Of Pegasus, accessed August 17, 2017 .
  14. ↑ a b c Mekigah: Autexousious. Terra Relicta, accessed August 17, 2017 .
  15. ↑ a b c OccultBlackMetal: Mekigah: Autexousious. Bringer Of Death Zine. Retrieved August 17, 2017 .
  16. ↑ All: Mekigah: Autexousious. RUM Zine, accessed August 17, 2017 .