Saturday, August 15, 2020

Full Length Review: Primitive Man "Immersion" (Relapse) by Dave Wolff

Band: Primitive Man
Location: Denver, Colorado
Country: USA
Genre: Death sludge
Full Length: Immersion
Format: LP, CD, cassette, digital
Label: Relapse
Release date: August 14, 2020
Primitive Man’s latest full length, released after three years of silence, has been described as “massive,” “confrontational,” “overwhelming” and “soul-crushing.” These descriptions go beyond the usual praise for good underground albums but are maybe the slightest bit off as it more likely shows the condition of the soul after it has been crushed beyond redemption. It announces humanity’s apocalypse is here, one that came about as a result of humanity’s own self-indulgence and willful blindness, one from which there is no coming back. It also shows how blaming music and art for society’s ills is missing the point entirely, as all you have to do is read any news source to see how bad things have become due to the shortsightedness humans have displayed time and again. With dissonant guitar chords, a gigantic atmosphere, eardrum-shattering feedback, an ungodly bass sound, resounding drums, and some of the most cavernous fry growling you can bank on hearing from a band like this, Primitive Man herald global catastrophe with the best of them and confirm the authors of apocalyptic literature from centuries past knew what they were talking about. Heaviness has been known to rub listeners the wrong way if they prefer less noise and more melody. But this is an album that needs all its heaviness to make its message clear if you haven’t read about it or heard of the band before. On “Immersion” Primitive Man take ten steps further than Type O Negative, Winter and 13, exploring the current affairs of the world, how they have snowballed since the 2000s, and their impact on the individual psyche. Generating fear, despair and hopelessness in a way that truly immerses you, this album personifies a future in the starkest contrast to promises made for personal gain. The reality of life has rarely if ever come across so bleak, as Primitive Man reaches into the most shadowy recesses of your mind, uncovering a slew of darkened sentiments to loose upon an outside world that is ill equipped to deal with the apocalypse it created for itself. The band goes on to describe how the apocalyptic theme of “Immersion” reflects on them personally, representing the will to create as a curse while being beset by a lack of financial security. It’s not surprising in a world in which short sightedness includes the mistrust of any form of expression that threatens to explode complacency. And it leaves the critical thinker completely screwed to the same level as the society that did the screwing. The repercussions of dissent are as real here as the grand scale of the destruction you experience while listening. –Dave Wolff

Lineup:
ELM: Vocals, guitars
JPC: Bass
JDL: Drums

Track list: 
1. The Lifer
2. Entity
3. Menacing
4. ∞
5. Foul
6. Consumption

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