Poino — Bon Ick Voyeur
The guitar work is angular, atonal freak-out blues, with a good measure of twang and the occasional devastating stoner metal power chord riff. It's a similar recipe as used by (Jesus Lizard's) Duane Denison. The aggressively thick, plodding texture of the pick bass riffs similar recalls W.M. Sims of Jesus Lizard / Scratch Acid. The band are tight, groovy and heavy, with a flair for cleverly timed fills and riffs, if not outright technicality or complexity of any kind.
The singer engages in a lot of spit-filled, mumbled ranting in the tradition of David Yow, but tends to rhythmically organize his parts a lot more than Yow, making them more chant-like. His vocal tone is a great deal raspier, as well; I'd describe it as a 'wheeze'. A certain shrill harmonic in his howl recalls the rough Nirvana rarities like "Curmudgeon". He can't really hold a tune, though he tries a vaguely melodic whispering moan at times, but his snarl is filled with a naked pain and helpless frustration. He's something like a sick dog.
The lyrics are noteworthy, as they find a good balance of bitter sarcasm and ambiguous yet fascinating surreal imagery. Until one has heard the album many times, it's likely only isolated phrases will register, things like "Help me catch it - please! ...but don't touch my shoes!" (at the end of "Ienod"), or the repeated wail "You can never go home!". They never stray into trying too hard at cleverness, or feel too much like pure gibberish or nonsense, making the album a lot easier to play many times over.
The songwriting is dynamic, diverse and consistent, which is really what makes this band something distinctive in and of themselves. The instrumental breakdown of "Pinking" is charged with cinematic tension and desperate emotion, a tense tremolo held for effect. This cascades pleasantly into a gorgeous classically inspired minor key lead that moves impressively through a deeply meaningful sequence of chords and finally rings out on one. The Jesus Lizard has never attempted something like this, and this isn't the only delicious extended instrumental passage to be found on this album.
"Doom Fist" has a haunting, percolating riff with ethereal falsetto 'aahs' that is nearer the realm of dreamy indie pop and Radiohead than dissonant punky math rock. Of course, the band uses this as an opportunity to viciously lash out with unexpected heaviness at the end of the song, in possibly the most brutal moment of the album. This way of joyously toying with expectations immediately put a smile on my face.
This 2nd half of the album differs significantly from the style of the first half, sounding more ambitious, melodic, arty and psychedelic. The final track takes the cinematic influence further with an actual orchestral/chamber music piece, including both plucked and bowed strings, as well as piano. It retains the curious dissonance and tension of their other compositions, making for an ominous, lonely and mysterious ending to the album, reminding me of the pitch black of the night sky in a remote place, and Romantic period violin soliloquys. The band's note choices are perhaps most haunting in this instrumentation/context. The drummer and guitarist do re-enter before the piece ends, but it never becomes a heavy number.
I was hugely impressed by this album "Bon Ick Voyeur". It takes the style of bands like Jesus Lizard, Shellac and Scratch Acid and gives it a bit more atmosphere, melody and cinematic flair, as well as dynamic range. From the creativity displayed in the songwriting on this album, I would say this band is clearly capable of a great many musical directions, even beyond what is heard here. Poino is a fantastic group, I highly recommend this album