ILSA – Intoxicantations

Reviewed by Ryan

If you haven’t gotten on board with A389 Recordings yet, then you are missing out.  The Baltimore-based grassroots label is doing great things for the underground, and the release of ILSA‘s Intoxicantations is no exception.  I first caught up with ILSA at a WINDHAND show at Smash! Records in Washington DC earlier this year, and have been hooked ever since.  Orion was good enough to give me the band’s first album, Tutti Il Colori Del Bruio, which blew me away with its desperation and heavy delivery.  I have been anxiously awaiting Intoxicantations ever since.

So does Intoxicantations top Tutti Il Colori Del Bruio?  The short answer is yes – the record as a whole shows ILSA‘s progression as a band and adds a few more dynamics that were not as evident in Tutti Il Colori Del Bruio.  The most evident is the lead guitar work.  The short solos that crawl over the rhythm are placed incredibly well, as it most evident in the 8-minute plus title track.  “Intoxicantations” is an emotive track that demands attention, with the mid-song breakdowns and transitions that make ILSA a force to be reckoned with.

You can’t really narrow down the sound of ILSA in words.  They use so many influences in their music, and just when you have them pegged, they switch it up tenfold.  There is definitely a strong crust influence, but doom and hardcore are also right up there.  The best part about ILSA is their ability to make these genre lines disappear.  There are not many original sounds that rear their head these days, but ILSA is nothing if not original in sound.  I just caught their live set in support of PIG DESTROYER at the Book Burner Record Release Show on October 19th at the Ottobar, and they absolutely crush souls in the flesh.

Don’t be surprised if Intoxicantations appears on a bunch of end of year lists.  The album is as aggressive as it is depressing, and is essential for true extreme underground junkies.  As good as this album is, I still have to say that “Blue Moon Haze” is still the definitive ILSA track for me, but “Say You Love Satan” is the highlight off Intoxicantations.  The tune is straight-to-the-chest evil, with some wicked riffs that compete with just about anything ILSA has put out.

So….

Buy this album…

…and let your soul be indiscriminately crushed with the pain and evil that is Intoxicantations.

You will be better for it, and glad you did.

+++

Pre-Order Intoxicantations HERE starting October 31st
Visit ILSA on Facebook HERE
Visit A389 Recordings HERE

ILSA performing live at the Ottobar in support of the PIG DESTROYER ‘Book Burner’ Record Release Show on October 19th, 2012.

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