Ah yes, of course, the Neoandertals. Deep, bass-heavy Brootal Death from Estonia! I remember really rather enjoyin' the two track Neander Valley release when I reviewed it about two years ago. In fact, I vaguely remember first playin' the recordin' whilst preparin' for myself a grease-infused feast of bacon, egg, black puddin' and other such delectable, lard-rich foodstuffs. The two pleasures corresponded agreeably; fat-frazzlin' meats syncronised with the hot bass sizzle, whilst the resultin' gastric engorgement matched the bloated satisfaction gained from the whole musical work. Havin' had plenty of time to digest both those tallow-filled treats, and since imbibed hundreds of others, I was pleased to receive this new package of low-frequency goodness to re-slacken my sigmoid flexure.

For those who may be unfamiliar with Neoandertals, they're a pair of primates in such hot pursuit o' bowel bustin' bottom-end roar for their tunes that they remove guitars from their instrumentation altogether, preferrin' instead to rumble along with bass only! Indeed, the record firmly determines said instrument as a tool to be used for deployment of devastatin' rhythmic pulvery, but the downtuned stop/start dishevelment is often interspersed with such ambitious fret flashiness as finger tappin' ‘n' string skippin', as well as twanglin' leads. This is Brootal Death, so as a matter-of-course, the riffs are frequently capped with predictably positioned pinched harmonics, a technique that would otherwise add textural vibrancy to a phrase, but their application to bass guitar strings seems to defeat the object, what with the gauge bein' far too heavy to provide any kind o' piercin' squeal. Although the elaborate riff-décor is proficiently executed, the basic playing itself is almost as loose as the strings. The drumwork is also all over the shop, hastily rattlin' out irregular clatter-patterns, full o' cymbal abuse and tom pummellin', whilst the vokill accompaniment consists of lots ‘n' lots slobberin' sub-throat tongue-coil. Given that it's a subterranean swamp of woolly-wobbly low-end with its porridgy skin punctured only by the cymbals, it gets rather difficult to follow, especially when high-speed shred suddenly ascends from the ultra-primitive two-note bludgeon, cos the duo often have trouble stayin' in synchrony with each other, resultin' in a very unpleasant scratch-heap. In fact, the only point at which I can get into the work is when it introduces a motif by means of a solo bass-line, givin' me some idea of the rhythm afore becomin' smothered in fuzz. I shouldn't be too insensitive though, they are a primitive cave-couple after all, dug up and re-animated from the Paleolithic era of Brutal Death Metal, long before musicians of its era had discovered that by stretchin' six bits of lighter animal intestines along an additional wooden club, as well as playing in time with each other, a much rounder sound could be achieved. No, this is Prehistoric, knuckle-draggin', bone-headed ham-fistedness, so you should expect nothin' more than a relentless, tuneless beating.

Given their heavy-handed approach, monochromatic sound and brain-dead, thuggish performance, the Neoandertals immediately bring to mind the works of good ol' Mr. Will ‘Small Knife' Rahmer and his caveman colleague, takin' the toneless, bass-saturated Mortician timbre, then draggin' it several thousand fathoms below the murky surface. The unkempt ‘n' unruly structures have a very large Brodequin feel, whilst the gratin' string-scrape and clumsy structures cause the same kind of listenin' displeasure as that achieved by the fizzy riff-scuff of Mutilating….Gutting by Decay. Blatantly influenced by the guttural aerobics of the first two Disgorge albums, the vokills exaggerate the slurpy style and haughty huskiness of Sir Matthew Way, usin' the squashed enunciation of She Lay Gutted, the cavernous, reverb-mouth of Cranial Impalement, and the brassy, self-indulgent vokill solo ideas of both.

Stone-age Death Metal musicians did not have the privilege of luxurious recordin' environments lined with mixer channels, racked with dynamic processors and stuffed with lovely microphones, so they had to make do with their cave-studio, comprising of a stone-mixin' console with arrow-heads for faders, cables made out of animal innards and mics fashioned from hollowed out tusks. Although the kit sound is handled rather well (except for the snare, which is barely audible), with plenty of nice, logical pannin' and the vokills stay just on the right side of reverberation over-kill, the general sound is ruffled and muddy, which serves only to exacerbate the bassy chaos. The product itself is nicely packaged, with a lovely watercolour cover art, a bit similar to classick Zig art, Path of the Weakenin' for Deeds o' Flesh, and interior booklet-pages crammed with primordial lyrical scrawl, givin' us fanciful history tutorials about caveman life!

Neanderthals Were Master Butchers. I'm sure they were, but Neoandertals are scruffy, sloppy and messy!

Baz

www.diabolicalconquest.com

Conceptually Neoandertals the band is immersed in the lifestyle of the Neanderthal, a mammal that was rendered extinct some 30,000 years ago. Lyrically and musically Neanderthals are ripe material for Brutal Death Metal. Songs could be about their survival in various climates, hunting methods, tribal battles, and burial rites. Hell, a concept album could be written about the life of one Neanderthal from birth to death that taps into the science of their tools, brain sizes, and mysterious extinction. Ah, but I hear you saying, "Mike, the Neanderthal idea sounds real cool, maybe even better than most of the gore lyrics that permeate much of Brutal/Death Metal, but how does the band Neoandertals sound?"

Well, patient readers, Neoandertals are a band out of Estonia who have put out a 2 song promo. The band is made up of 2 members, Rain on vocals/bass, and Roland on drums. The bass is played without a pick at hyper speed with a fuzzy down tuned sound as if a bee was stuck in your ear, and the 2 songs are filled with solid riffs. The drums are primitive blast beats from start to finish. Vocally, Rain sounds subhuman as he belches out undecipherable lyrics. As a whole Neoandertals is reminiscent of a less tight Disgorge (USA), with some hints in sound and pace of "Eaten Back to Life" era Cannibal Corpse.

Still, this is a two song promo coming in at about 7 minutes, which means it was more than likely produced on a low budget. Therefore, it would be interesting to hear this band with a little more money in their budget for a good recording that has 6 total tracks. Playing as a two piece is not such a bad idea, but I wonder how they would sound with the power and diversity of a guitar in the mix. It is evident that these guys have talent. This means they should consider an injection of as many musical elements as possible into their music otherwise they risk becoming one dimensional. In theory, if this band finds the right combination of sound, and instruments, they could go a long way with their Neanderthal concept, which is not any more outlandish than the Egyptian concepts of Nile.

Rating BM: 6.6/10.0

www.burningmisery.com

Neoandertals are an Estonian duo, who categorise themselves under Ultra Brutal Death Metal. Although the minimal playing time offers little opportunity for the listener to fully experience the band's creative approaches, the key elements of the sub-subgenre can still be recognised instantly in the compositions. Moist, borborygmic gutturals, appropriately barbaric riffs and tendon tearing blastbeats are all available in abundance here. So what sets these simians apart from the rest of the slobbering pack? It is of course the exclusion of six string from their instrumental arrangement, instead utilising dual bass guitars. Said method immerses both pieces in fizzing effluent, creating an utterly putrid sound that oozes liquefied grainy fuzz, greatly enhancing both the Prehistoric themes and the oafish yet savage caveman-like delivery.

In attempting to describe Neoandertals in terms of their influences and bands whose stylistic qualities they share, the prominence and importance of the bass guitar can be compared to bands such as Bound and Gagged, Retch and Sikfuk, for whom the bass figure can often act as a linchpin for a particular passage of their material. Though an integral portion of the seven minute recording is performed at a vertiginous rate, the band manage to crowbar a couple of marginally slower parts into the songs, which resemble suitably braindead blocked string chug-grooves.

A heavy reliance upon low frequency guitars can easily leave a band dangling precariously above an impenetrable cesspool, the recorded output resembling an indecipherable sludge-logged hodgepodge. However, the Neoandertals employ effective production methods and song writing strategies in ensuring their demo comes across as articulate and digestible. The amplification of the basses and the structural nature of the parts assigned to each are both beneficial in creating a construable end product. They achieve this via rumbling overdrive in one channel and a cleaner, less distorted signal in the other, which, coupled with the straightforward basslines played on each instrument allows ample construal of the songs. The gutturals are mixed centrally, a placement that prevents them from merging with the bass, avoiding the trap into which bands whose bass and vokills both access the same subterranean depths can often fall into. Finally, the importance of higher frequencies is mercifully taken on board, the mudfeast punctuated by pot-like snare battery and bright cymbals.

The continuous booming low end does manage to retain its appeal during the demo, but perhaps only because of the short playing time. In the context of a full length album, the assiduous dedication to the dual bass set up and the unyielding crunching twang could begin to grate on one's ears and become difficult to stomach if its duration exceeded the twenty five minute mark.

In summary, ‘Neander Valley' acts as a truly immense audio cudgel, the galvanised rhythms decimating any trace of subtlety with its total dedication to creating the heaviest, most crushing sound possible.
Rating: 7.9

Baz

www.diabolicalconquest.com

The concept of this band is quite unusual as it deals with… Preshitoric men! And after listening to it, I think the music fits perfectly with the concept! With "Neander Valley", NEOANDERTALS proposes 2 tracks of raw and savage Brutal Death Grind! Indeed, try to imagine a raw version of MALIGNANCY and DISGORGE (US), with butchering riffs and prehistoric grunts, but also with some heavy and more technical parts! The brutal parts are the most important elements of these 2 tracks, but the technical ones are rather well done and give the tracks a new dimension! What could I say more? We don’t need any evolution of Humans!! Stay Prehistoric and brutal as fuck! Hoping for a next stuff soon!

Vincent / Vomit the Soul zine

www.vomitzine.fr.st

Who are Neoandertals, you ask? They´re an Estonian ultra brutal death metal outfit. Where is Estonia? What am I, a cartographer? Look it up yourself, you lazy cunt.

The information I am willing to share, free of charge, is that Neoandertals was once a three-piece unit consisting of bassist/vocalist Rain Pohlak of Mortophilia, drummer Roland Seerand guitarist Toomas Keermaan. Earlier this year Toomas parted ways with the band, and Rain and Roland chose to continue on as a two-piece for the recording of their first demo Neander Valley.

Contained on Neander Valley is a mere two songs with the effort clocking in at just over 7 minutes. Both songs essentially sound like what California´s Disgorge would sound like if Matti Way, Ricky Myers and Eric Flesy recorded their ´95 demo as a three-piece. The only difference being that Ricky Myers and Eric Flesy are much better at their respective instruments, with Roland and Rain coming across rather amateurishly at best.

Rain´s vocals are virtually identical in tone, pitch and delivery as Matti Way during his time in Disgorge; every rasp, every gurgle, every weird slurp, he pretty much covered it perfectly. Unfortunately, drum and bass death metal isn´t that good in theory, and even less so in practice and those vocals really seem out of place without some solid riffs carrying the music along, it´s just a lot of weak blasts, lame bass lines and insane gurgles.

As a brutal death metal band, with a good guitarist with some decent concepts on song structure in the fold, they may actually become decent for the style, even if they are incredibly unimaginative, but as a two-piece, they´re definitely lacking in substance and pinch a giant Neoanderturd for their debut recording

Teufel
www.teufelstomb.com

(In Estonian)
Kuidas saada sellest plaadist kätte täeilik elamus? DP pakub järgmist viisi.

Vali rahulik ja mõnus puhkehetk. Kui sul on oakotist iste, vaju sellesse; sobib ka muu võimalikult mugav mööbliese. Lükka plaadimängijasse mõni New Earth Recordsi eriliselt rahustav meditatsioonimuusikaüllitis, näiteks "Sun Spirit", "A Time For Peace" või "Reiki Whale Song". Pane kõrvaklapid pähe, lõdvestu, sulge silmad ja püüa vaikse flöödivile, unise süntesaatoriümina ja malbete vaalahuigete taustal ette kujutada tõeliselt puhast ja kaunist ürgloodust, kaugete kõukude ülemeelelist tarkust ja Kõiksuse Loojaga üks-olemise ajastut, kuni saabub ülim naudingutranss ja magus visualiseeritud virtuaaltegelikkus.

Järgmiseks sammuks pead olema eelnevalt koduse muusikakeskuse programminud sobival hetkel käivitama duo Neoandertals 2005. aasta demoplaadi "Neander Valley". Kuna oled sügavas transiseisundis ja näed vaimusilmaga eriti eredalt, peaks sinu loodud ürgmaastikust kõigi eelduste kohaselt välja kargama jahikirest haaratud neandertali ürginimene, käes robustne kiviteraga oda või jõhkralt eemaletõukav nui, silmis karnivoori rahuldamatu kihk ja võikakujulisil huulil loomalikud mörahtused. Hämaraist teadvusesoppidest plahvatab pinnale rassimällu talletatud surmahirm selliste olendite ees, ja keegi oleks sulle nagu kusagil öelnud, et tegemist on meisterlike lihunikega. Tardud jõuetus õõvas, sest tead – peagi süüakse sind toorelt, kuid enne seda pead kohutavates piinades iseenda verre lämbuma.

Kui tuled sellest kogemusest välja omal jõul, vajad siiski aastaid elukutseliste vaimutohtrite abi, kuid vähemalt ei raiska sa oma raha mõttetuile new age-blufiplaatidele. Kui oled eriliselt haiglane – või erakordselt uudishimulik –, muretsed endalegi basskitarri või trummid või kroonilise kõripõletiku ja hakkad tegema bändi. Võib-olla ei tule see sul alguses päris niimoodi välja, nagu sa tahaksid – Neoandertalsil ka ei tule –, aga sa vähemalt tead, mida tahad, ja võid olla kindel, et sind inspireerinud bändile pole maailmas seni ühtegi täpselt sarnast.

Seda, et ärkad tihti külmas higilombis röökides teadmisega, et teravaks ihutud kivi abil on sind just äsja jalgevahest rindmikuni lõhki raiutud, ei saa paraku vältida.

Ilusaid unenägusid!

Dark Patrick - www.hardrockclub.ee