A band that proves that violence can be bland
Into the Moat have two plans of attack: one is of total aural battering and the other is to unnerve you totally. And for the most part they've succeeded. 'The Design' is awesome in the original sense of the word which, together with the war theme (complete with tank sounds), tells us quite a lot about the band. They have a habit of mixing things up by dropping an aural bomb in 'quieter' points or suddenly cutting it right back. However, despite all that, it's just a bit bland, not to mention messy - there's no rhyme or reason for the way some songs are put together.
The first thing that strikes me about this album is the drumming - every time I listen to it, I think of Viking wars, it's that fierce. But, not to be outdone, the guitar melodies (if you can call it that) seems to be battling for attention as well, almost having the effect of nails down a blackboard. And, with the brutal base of guitars never far from the top, vocals pretty much come last.
It's the final track that stands out the most on 'The Design'. On 'Prologue...' there's some good riffing and it's quite quiet - almost unassuming - before breaking into all out aural savagery. That isn't to say that after a good few listens the start doesn't start to unsettle you - it does. This carries on all throughout the song, chopping and changing between black, thrash, and death metal continuously. The last four minutes catch you out, though, by fading out to first a guitar, then keyboard solo that wouldn't be out of place on in a fairground horror ride or in a sci-fi horror movie.
Chopping and changing is a theme that runs throughout the whole album, with schizo melodies, fast and furious drums, and thudding bass interchange giving a really ominous feeling. Most of the concepts in 'Prologue' are repeated in pretty much every track and, by the end, everything sounds the same.
Occasionally, Into The Moat give us some strange but inspired moments - 'Empty Shell' is one of them. Although a lot of it is like the rest of the album, there are elements of jazz in the quieter periods, which, if you catch them, makes it a highlight. 'The Inexorable' is fast and heavy, but uses the quiet/loud effect much better than other songs as it seems better thought out.
'The Design' is alright, but beyond that it's fails to really to excite and inspire despite the clear promise of 'Prologue...' and 'Empty Shell'. Yes it's violent, and yes it can freak you out, but all too soon that combination becomes boring. It's a shame, if there were more standout songs it would be a much better album. It's really for hardcore death and thrash metal fans only.