optisailor2002 Being a casual fan of past works of Melechesh, knowing that Conspiracy is the project of ex-voice of the band definitely made me curious of the band's works. Irremediable is Conspiracy's third full length album, released under Pulverised Records, and the attractive, seemingly cosmos-themed album artwork helps initially in capturing the attention of the listener.

Unlike the speed-infused black metal that band mastermind Al Hazred's ex-band, Melechesh plays in, from opening track Nocturnal Hunters it is obvious that Conspiracy is a totally different animal, with the strong orchestral elements that are present right from the start, and the emphasis on the melody in the music, unleashing an emotional section through the sappy lead guitar solo at the beginning of Nocturnal Hunters. Throughout the album, the symphonic/orchestral elements remain consistently present, with the heavy usage of keyboards as the ambient instrument, constantly shrouding the music in a somewhat mystical atmosphere. The abilities on the various instruments of Al Hazred is constantly tested on the album, not only through the ability to execute each instrument perfectly (such as the blasting sections on the drums), but also through the ability to change playing and musical styles with ease.

The songwriting on the album is also pretty unconventional, with the band often jumping from one style to another with little or no warning, and displays the wide range of influences that the band has included in the creativity process. This can be seen from the numerous neo-classical inspired lead guitar solos that are present, and how the band often chooses to suddenly jump into a full-on black metal section without much warning. The orchestral arrangements and usage of what sounds like a pipe organ on instrumental tracks like Ouverture further bring in a kind of gothic influence in the music, and even sounds like it could easily fit to a movie's soundtrack, before leading on to the slower and darker Black Mass. Al Hazred also switches vocal styles accordingly, with tracks like The Pentagram seeing him using clean vocals, and riffs that sound like it could come off an 80s hard rock record. Songs like title track Irremediable even sounds like a King Diamond Abigail-era track with a neo-classical edge to it, and even comes complete with falsetto backing vocals, though these come across as slightly weak.

However, on the first few listens to the album, Irremediable can turn out to be quite a disappointment, with tracks that often require a number of listens before really setting in. Furthermore, the somewhat compressed and restrained sound of the album also makes the more aggressive moments on the album like Armageddon Broke sound slightly weak, and this easily led to the album boring me out on the first listen. Also, songs like Black Mass, though promising as a track, tend to end weakly, making the song less enjoyable than it should really be. Coming back to the album after awhile though, leads to numerous pleasant discoveries, and if given the time, Irremediable can be a pretty enjoyable listen. However, if one is looking for an album similar to Melechesh's output and one to headbang to, then prepared to be disappointed.

Originally written for http://www.heavymetaltribune.com/

Time Signature A dream of fear...

Genre: black metal

This is one of those black metal releases that have received both praise and really scathing criticism of the very same characteristica. With "Irremediable", Conspiracy has been criticized for being too melodic and too cheesy by some, while others have hailed it as being refreshing and innovative because of the very same symphonic and melodic approach.

I think that it is quite obvious that "Irremediable" is anchored in the black metal genre, and there are plenty of black metal elements like chaotic and atmospheric riffage, blastbeats and harsh snarling vocals, but there is quite an emphasis on melody and there are several very melodic lead guitar patterns, and more - and more shreddy - guitar solos than what one might be accustomed to in black metal. In addition, there are several symphonic effects, including a ubiquitous King Diamond-esque organ, and several passages sound like power metal, speed metal and traditional metal rather than all out black metal.

I don't have a problem with the melodic approach, and I don't mind the inspiration from power, speed and traditional metal, because I think it all adds to the variety that characterizes this album. But the organ really annoys me. It is not only ubiquitous, it is also very dominant in the mix, and I do not think that smothering everything with organ effects (and other synth effects) did this release any favors - rather it turned it into quite the cheesefest, which is a shame because - other than that - I do not think this is such a bad black metal release.

Well, that is, the King Diamond influences, I think, are fair enough, because Diamond is a very influential figure in metal, and he has released a lot of awesome material throughout the years. But King Diamond is King Diamond, and Conspiracy is not King Diamond - and I think that those places where Conspiracy really draw extensively on King Diamond do not work that well, and they sound more like someone unsuccessfully trying to imitate King Diamond.

Apart from that, and the organ cheesefest, I do not agree with the really scathing negative reviews I have read. I think this is a decent and varied black metal release.

Vehemency I can admit that symphonic / melodic black metal isn’t really my thing but I’m still able to distinguish the good efforts from the bad. Unfortunately, Conspiracy’s third full-length Irremediable leans towards the latter category, although the album has its few good moments, too.

The problem with Irremediable is that it doesn’t sound either melodically inspired or brutally convincing. It’s clear that the maker has been spinning some Dimmu Borgir discs and, at times, the symphonic elements succeed very well (I especially enjoy the instrumental "Ouverture" and ”Black Mass”) but often the synth melodies - and guitar solos - are just too cheesy. And what comes to the brutal black metal, it’s the somewhat powerless, polished production and the programmed (though incredibly detailed) drums that hinder Irremediable from rising to ass-kicking strength.

To continue the nagging, the total playing time, 55 minutes, is too long for an album that has too many crucial flaws to begin with. Add the occasional awkward clean vocals to my list of Irremediable’s downsides, and the list is about done. Symphonic black metal lovers might find more to enjoy from this, but I still think that Irremediable is subpar in its category, a category that has seen much more impressive albums throughout its history - hence I fail to come up with reasons why to look into this record.