Anguisette - The Creation Chamber

Artist: Anguisette
CD title: The Creation Chamber
Label: SINister Records
Genre: Gothic/Darkwave/EBM
Website: https://www.anguisette.com/
Reviewer: DJ Kantrip
Date: 09/18/2011

The Creation Chamber is the debut album of Anguisette, the brain child of SINS violinist and soundtrack composer, Jyri Glynn. Aptly named, this album combines several amazing vocal talents with the myriad of influences that inspire Glynn's work. From soft and dark atmospheric tracks, to balls-out electro rock, The Creation Chamber takes the listener deep inside the musical worlds of its creator.

While there is a common Darkwave / EBM influence running though The Creation Chamber it is rather hard to pick out one or two songs that ultimately define what this disc is about, or are indicative of its overall sound. There are songs like "Losing it All"and "Remorse" which are perky little dance tracks full of heart-wrenching lyrics. "Spherical" and "Resolution" are beautiful songs that invoke a techno-mystical atmosphere, utilizing violins or haunting voices to guide the listener into a soft trance state. "Cellophane Rain" and "29 Years" have an electro/goth rock sound, with guitars, live drumming, and strong vocals.

From a DJ's perspective, this album is one of those Multi-Purpose CD's that you keep with you just in case. All of the tracks are club-friendly and personally I've been able to mix this CD into everything from a fast paced dance mix to a non-oontz Goth Rock set.

Glynn does an amazing job of collaborating with the vocal talents on the album. According to their website, he would email the vocalists with the title and theme and let them take it from there. Dawn Wood's powerful singing voice is supported well with on songs like "Insomnia" and "Indefinite." Nya Shirzad and Miss FD deliver some lovely synthpop dance numbers on "Losing it All" and "Reset". The Break Up and Cylab's Severina X Sol's entrancing voice guides the listener down into the atmospheric "Resolution" and "Dimitto." Every vocalist's strengths are played upon perfectly.

This leads to my one complaint about The Creation Chamber, which is that if you just played it in a shuffled set with everything else on your computer/MP3 player, you couldn't really tell that these songs all came from the same album. The CD feels more like a compilation at times with the changes in tone and tempo. There is also the Delerium comparison: the electro/atmospheric band that famously uses a multitude of female singers to capture the various worlds that its music creates.

The difference between Anguisette and Delerium however, is that Delerium has a way of invoking ancient cultures viewed through a modern filter. Anguisette seems to do the opposite. Rather than reflecting upon the past, all of the songs have a futuristic feel. For example, the instrumental "Spherical" feels like I'm being taken on a tour of a dystopian world, led by a mournful violin that is trying to find its place among the digital beats and synthesizers.

Anguisette is also one of those bands that have the rare talent of replicating what they do recorded almost perfectly on stage. Drums, bass guitar, guitars, violins and keyboards make up the live band and songs are accompanied by visuals projected on the screen. The band even brings in three of the vocalists (Dawn Wood Severina X Sol, and Nya Shirzad) to tag off between all the songs. Again the rather diverse nature of the band makes for a rather hectic stage show but the same variety and energy that's presented on the CD is captured beautifully live, and that is really what I like to see in a live show.

If you're looking for a CD that's good to keep around no matter what mood you're in, or you like bands like Delerium which have a variety of voice to them, then this is the album for you.

Buy Anguisette - The Creation Chamber:

If you live in the Seattle area and you can catch one of Anguisette's shows, then I highly recommend you do so. You will not be disappointed.

- DJ Kantrip