Alphaville (album)
2020 studio album by Imperial Triumphant
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Alphaville is the fourth studio album by American avant-garde metal band Imperial Triumphant. It was released on July 31, 2020, through Century Media Records.[1][2] The album was recorded at Colin Marston's Menegroth Studios in New York City.[3]
| Alphaville | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | July 31, 2020 | |||
| Recorded | December 2019 | |||
| Studio | Menegroth Studios | |||
| Genres | ||||
| Length | 49:49 | |||
| Label | Century Media | |||
| Producers | ||||
| Imperial Triumphant chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Alphaville | ||||
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Background
In an interview with Echoes and Dust, vocalist and guitarist Zachary Ezrin stated about the recording process "It was a different process for every single song. We started writing in 2018 and every song has a different story basically."[3] Later in the interview, Ezrin talked about the inspiration behind the title of the album, "The name Alphaville comes from the 1965 film by Jean-Luc Godard by the same name and in addition to the content, which was a big inspiration to us. The actual literal name of Alphaville is French for number one city which was a huge inspiration to us because we felt, even though the film takes place in Paris, this kind of a mentality also applies to the New York state of mind."[3]
In an interview with Revolver, Ezrin stated the album was influenced by Portal, Ornette Coleman, Cannibal Corpse, Duke Ellington, and Metallica.[4] Ezrin's birthplace of Manhattan was also an influence on the music of the album,[5] with him stating "I hear so much music in the sound of the city, I can get inspired by the sound of a subway train on the tracks."[6]
Tomas Haake of Meshuggah plays taiko drums on the track "City Swine".[3][7]
Musical style
The album has been described as avant-garde metal,[3] blackened death metal,[1] and jazz fusion.[1]
Reception
Alphaville received critical acclaim upon release. Angry Metal Guy awarded it a "great" score of 4.0/5 and stated "Between the fluid transitions between songs, the various head-jerking moments littered throughout, and the sheer level of musicianship on display by all involved, Alphaville showcases just what Imperial is capable of."[1] Max Heilman of Metal Injection gave it a score of 9/10 and wrote "This album presents rarified, uninhibited, experimental metal in its most confrontational form. Nonetheless, it’s hard to resist multiple listens."[8] Gary Alcock of Ghost Cult Magazine described it as "A breathtaking vision of inescapable claustrophobia and unrestrained pandemonium, 2020 has its very own soundtrack, and its name is Alphaville."[9]
Alphaville appeared on multiple year-end lists. Revolver named it the 25th best album of 2020.[10] Metal Hammer named it the 10th best album of 2020.[11]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Rotted Futures" | 5:59 |
| 2. | "Excelsior" | 5:52 |
| 3. | "City Swine" | 6:56 |
| 4. | "Atomic Age" | 8:43 |
| 5. | "Transmission to Mercury" | 6:41 |
| 6. | "Alphaville" | 8:09 |
| 7. | "The Greater Good" | 7:22 |
| Total length: | 49:49 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 8. | "Experiment (Voivod cover)" | 4:48 |
| 9. | "Happy Home (The Residents cover)" | 4:48 |
| Total length: | 59:25 | |
Personnel
- Imperial Triumphant
- Zachary Ilya Ezrin – vocals, guitar
- Steve Blanco – bass, vocals, piano, mellotron, synthesizer, taiko
- Kenny Grohowski – drums, taiko
- Additional personnel
- Trey Spruance – sampling, mastering, production
- Sarai Chrzanowski – choir ("Rotted Futures", "Alphaville")
- Tomas Haake – taiko ("City Swine")
- Yoshiko Ohara – choir ("Atomic Age", "The Greater Good")
- R.K. Halvørson – vocals ("Atomic Age")
- Andromeda Anarchia – choir ("Transmission to Mercury", "Happy Home")
- J. Walter Hawkes – trombone ("Transmission to Mercury")
- Colin Marston – guitar ("Experiment"), mixing, mastering, production
- Phlegeton – vocals ("Experiment")
- Zbigniew Bielak – artwork