12th February 2024
Over the fifteen years since their formation, Infected Rain have been steadily developing their eclectic sound, offering everything from pounding riffs, growling and clean vocals, use of electronica and metal spanning a range of sub-genres. Since their last album Ecdysis in 2022, the band has seen a significant change in personnel with the departure of the Babich brothers and the arrival of new bassist Alice Lane, leaving Infected Rain as a quartet.
Vocalist Lena Scissorhands is no stranger to sharing her innermost emotions through her lyrics and Time continues this trend. Opener, Because I Let You, a track full of vivid metaphors and emotive language, also intensely embodies Lena’s ability to be both monumentally formidable and tenderly vulnerable within the same song. Microscopically analysing the conflict of joy and pain that love can bring, there is a yearning for recognition and a change to the pattern of hurt. Love! A thorny rose with petals red / It feels so good, it hurts so bad / Trapped in a cycle of pain profound / You are so deaf to my moanful sound. Because I Let You begins with slamming, heavy riffs, hostile vocals and bassist Alice Lane already making her presence felt. Defying simple genre classification from the outset, the band traverse nu-metal, thrash metal, progressive metal and even an ominously ambient central section in which Lena bares her soul. Cut me open and see / The raw version of me. Those whose have seen the accompanying video for the song (and if you have not, watch it now), will understand just how deep she delves into her psyche. A simultaneously caustic and heartbreaking performance, it opens the album magnificently.
Dying Light contemplates the transient nature of life and inevitable decline that comes with each year. Balancing the use of images in nature and in human life, the lyrics also touch upon the concept of legacy. We try to hold on to our past / But, it’s slipping away so fast / We try to make a lasting mark / But, in the end we are just a spark. With a cavernous heaviness that strays into djent territory, a distinctive groove and a passage of EDM, Dying Light allows Infected Rain to exhibit everything in their arsenal.
Like many tracks on the album, the slower third track Never To Return encourages us to make the most of each moment such is our helplessness in fighting the unstoppable flow of time. Time is a lesson that we will never learn / Never learn, learn / A river that gives and flows / A journey that nobody knows. Eugene Voluta’s drums are emphatically purposeful in their assiduity, giving insistent balance to the quieter moments of the track which incorporates middle eastern influences and engrossing strident guitar from Vadim "Vidick" Ojog.
Lighthouse starts with a computer manipulated spoken word section which asserts that human thought patterns and feelings can be directed, and that we can align our experiences with our desires. Our thoughts and emotions generate a certain energy that interacts with the universe / And that this energy can be harnessed to bring about our desired outcomes / By aligning our intentions and desires with this energy / We can create a reality that is in harmony with our goals and aspirations. It is a powerful message of empowerment, self-belief and the transformative power of the mind that features one of the best vocal performances on the album; it would not be out of place on an album by Within Temptation or Nightwish. Scissorhands must now be considered within the same breathe as some of the best singers in any metal genre, such is her staggering range of vocal technique across the album. On The Answer Is You and Enmity, she is ragingly confrontational in one moment and diaphanously angelic the next.
Vivarium, which warns of humanity’s sometimes erratic choices, balances djent rhythms, and synthwave embellishments to conjure its perturbing apprehension. Infected Rain state, “Vivarium is about feeling trapped in a world we've built ourselves. A perfect world full of illusion, gimmicks and fake promises, like a beautiful but restricting glass garden. It's about overcoming these barriers and seeing through the thick air and tall walls. This song is for everyone trying to break free from their own limits and create their own path." Alice Lane’s dexterous and astute bass work brings a profundity of depth to the track as she settles into the line-up with ease. Described by the band as, “an homage to every fleeting second, every heartbeat, and every breath that has led us to this moment,” Time was once again produced, mixed and mastered by Valentin Voluta and there is a distinguished dark elegance to the overall sound of the album. Every moment has been perfectly captured, meaning bludgeoning riffs and trenchant drums are as clear as the serene and transcendent intervals. Pandemonium and Unpredictable enhance the fearfulness within the band’s examination of both future and past as they further display their willingness to experiment within a single song.
During the first section, Game of Blame harks back the 1980s, complete with electronic drum fills completely reminiscent of that decade. It is not long however, before the band revert to their trademark sound with a thunderous breakdown as they create their allegory of the emotional toll of hypocrisy and the need to take responsibility for our own actions. Playing with such delight / Each accusation, an endless fight / We never try to look within / To see the damage that it brings.
Paura (Fear in English) begins with enigmatic and cagy spoken word in Italian: La paura è un mostro che sembra invincibile / Ma ricorda, il mostro vive solo dentro di noi / Noi lo nutriamo, lo alimentiamo con i nostri pensieri (Fear is a monster that seems invincible / But remember, the monster lives only within us / We feed it, we feed it with our thoughts). A multi-faceted track, Paura soon stomps mightily like Godzilla between skyscrapers. Lane and Voluta are muscular and nefarious either side of a short, disconcertingly quiet whispered section. Remember to stop and breathe / Fear cannot tell you how to live / Remember to breathe. With Paura melting into A Second or A Thousand Years (a fantastical ambient piece), the album draws to a close, with Infected Rain leaving us to decipher and navigate the clouds of time that they have left behind. The album constantly challenges us to look deeper within ourselves and to question the choices we make and how to maximise the limited time we have.
On their previous album, Ecdysis, Infected Rain showed an increasing ability to meld elements of their sound, lyrics and incredible vocal executions of their singer. With Time, they have raised their bar once again. Mordant and rancorous, sorrowful and heart-rending, it is an album rich in soaring melody, uncompromising lyrics and wondrous aural variations. Lena Scissorhands will rightly receive much of the plaudits but the new line-up of Infected Rain have pushed the boundaries of what modern metal can be and in doing so have produced what may be looked back on as one of the most accomplished albums of the year.
Time is out now.
Watch the incredible video for Because I Let You below.
Time is an incredibly good album! The previous albums were already great, but now they've taken it a step further. Courage to try new things, very varied and a lot of power. Love it!