Polish combo Genius Ultor was formed in 2008 as a side-project for Stillborn, and in 2010 they debuted with Dzien Nocy (Ataman Productions). Now the trio returns with the seven-tracker Nic Co Boskie Nie Jest Mi Obce (meaning something like ‘I consider nothing that is divine as alien’), which was recorded in 2013 at the ruins of an old pre-war house by Zgorzel, Kra and Wirus.
The opening track, also the title track, gives a first glimpse of Genius Ultor’s unheavenly beauty. It brings a form of death / Black Metal alike stuff that isn’t that common, although there for sure is a specific execution, sound and atmosphere that isn’t that unusual in the project’s home country (or East Europe more generally; forget the Baltic, Scandinavian, Alpine or Lowlands-based scene…). And it goes further than that, with being different from the grey masses. It’s not the distinctive structures or the growling grunts only that are little remarkable; what to think about, for example, the almost fuzzy-funky guitar lines at the end of Koniec Wszystkiego Co Znamy, or the pronounced bass lines throughout the whole album. What about the specific guitar leads in Kataryniarz, or the cool opening sequences on Zło Przenajświętsze? Krew Nie Woda, the last track, is based on Impaled Nazarene’s Blood Is Thicker Than Water, with a variety of vocals (harmony chants and blackish screams) and acoustic guitars (no other [electric] instruments); it’s a strange track to end with, but as a matter of fact, the whole album is pretty unusual, and therefor this song just fits.
It needs persuasion, an open-minded vision, and some hints of mental deviation, to explore what Nic Co Boskie Nie Jest Mi Obce has to offer, but in combination with a boarish, yet therefore perfectly adapted sound, it might satisfy your rotten ear drums. Do not expect some Stillborn-alike re-adaptations, but a pretty unique, foul interpretation of anti-human sonic expression…