Retrace My Fragments

Och am Review vun haut geet et ëm eng Band, déi eppes geschafen huet, wat et virdrun nach ni Lëtzebuerg ginn huet. Mir schwätze vu Retrace My Fragments, déi dem Nolauschterer mat der Komplexitéit vun hirem Debutalbum Ethereal Flux Kappzerbrieches bereeden.

Et ass schwéier Retrace My Fragments an en Tirang ze stiechen, ma ech géif behaapten, dass een si als Progessive Death Metal Band kéint bezeechnen. Vill vun de fetten a rockege Gittar-Riffer kommen zwar aus dem old school Thrash an Death Metal, ma den Album ass donieft vollgepaakt mat ausgefeilte Licks, interessante Sweeps an zimlech féxen a komplizéierte Soloen, bei deene just geübten Nolauschterer matkommen. Den Album spruddelt nëmme esou vu Kreativitéit!

Dat selwecht gëllt iwwregens och fir d'Drums. Och déi kéinten hiren Zweck net besser erfëllen a suergen um Album fir de richtegen Fluppes (Merci fir d'Iwwersetzung, Yannick Schockmel ^^). Och hei geet et zum Deel mat Hëllef vun double bass oder blast beats einfach nëmme virun, op anere Plazen huet den Drummer Twiggy ganz interessant an ongewéinlech Fills agebaut, a beweist domat wat hie sou drop huet!

Dat bescht un der Saach ass awer, dass Retrace My Fragments genau de richtege Mëttelwee fonnt hunn tëscht komplexem a rockegem Songwriting. Sou gëtt et och genuch Passagen, déi een einfach nëmme matrappen an een zwéngen ze headbangen, souwuel vu Säite vun der Rhythmus- wéi och vun der Lead-Sektioun.

Dovunner ofgesinn gëtt et op Ethereal Flux och soss gehirlos vill Ofwiesslung. Obwuel d'Lidder alleguerten aneneen iwwerginn an et doduerch schwéier gëtt, ze mierke, wou ee Lidd ophält an en anert ufänkt, sou huet dach all Lidd seng eegen Atmosphär a seng eege Stëmmung. A quasi all Lidd hunn d'Licks an d'Soloen och en anere Sound an et ginn aner Effekter benotzt, wat alles dem Gittarist Claude sengem Axe FX ze verdanken ass, mat deem alleguerten d'Gittaren opgeholl goufen! Wat d'Licks an d'Soloen ugeet, gëtt et wuel keng Gittar-Technik, déi net benotzt gouf..

A Punkto Gesang bréngt de Marti nieft den déiwe Growls och mol cleane Gesang an den een oder anere bësse méi verréckte Passage mat eran, wat him och gutt gelongen ass, trotz dem liichte Lispelen.

Duerch déi ganz Mëschung an de quasi perfekte Songwriting ass Ethereal Flux alles anescht wéi repetitiv oder langweileg! E klenge Minuspunkt gëtt et awer fir d'Produktioun. De Produzent François "Doudin" Desdiste huet zwar säi bescht gemaach, fir déi digital Opnahm vun de Gittare sou organesch wéi méiglech kléngen ze loossen, ma iergendwéi kléngen d'Gittaren heiansdo awer nach bësse kënschtlech, virun allem bei de Soloen a bei de Melodien.

Fir mech perséinlech awer elo schonn de Lëtzebuerger Metal Highlight 2014!

Retrace My Fragments bréngen hiert Meeschterwierk e Samschdeg am Rockhalcafé eraus. Mat dobäi sinn Heartbeat Parade, Hungry For The Truth an An Apple A Day. Lass geet et um hallwer 8, den Entrée ass gratis! - The Metal Diplomat

Things started really slowly for Retrace My Fragments. Founded in 2006 by well-known faces from the local underground, they soon released a demo, to be followed by the EP Vertizontal in 2008. If you read my review from back then, you will understand that they were a promising band still struggling to find their own sound. Another demo saw the light of day in 2011, and while there was definite progress, the production value could only hint at what we get with the quintet’s first longplayer Ethereal Flux.

Apart from it being a gorgeous item coming in an eye-pleasing digipak and a poster with an imaginary star chart, this concept album might be the most advanced metal record ever to come from Luxembourg. Retrace My Fragments have been working on the material for six years, and all three tracks from the preceding demo have been recorded in far superior versions. The band calls its musical orientation progressive experimental death metal, and while that is coming as close as it gets, there is much more to discover on Ethereal Flux. The concept album will soon be followed by a science fiction novella written by vocalist Marti, so I am not going into the details. Let it just be said that the thirteen songs on the CD have been subdivided into six chapters, a prologue and an epilogue. More often than not, the songs are flowing into each other, so that it is recommended to listen to the album in one go. Picking out single tracks will most definitely end in abrupt stops that are not so ideal.

The intro or prologue Cosmic, The Future is an instrumental wonder that has not much in common with the death metal genre, and surprises with some cranky electronic stuff, making this a great introduction into the hour long album. The first regular track Treewe’s End is the shortest vocal track, but don’t expect anything simple. Yes, there are catchy moments, but all of this is clad in incredible instrumentation. Drummer Twiggy, also known of Clean State, can finally show off all his technical virtuosity, making him the undisputed best drummer to ever come from Luxembourg. The bass guitar perfectly joins the game, never faltering even at the most staccato moments, and the two guitarists are harmonising in the most perfect way imaginable. The following Rime Of The Instant Space Traveller adds even more insanity. The foundation of the music is progressive death metal, reminding me of crazy stuff like Gorguts, even though the most obvious parallel might be Between The Buried And Me if they were more metal and less core. There are also moments of purest thrash bliss, some vintage heavy metal guitar duelling that occasional borders on the bluesy, classical touches and some really well done jazz breaks. Marti’s death growls sound as evil as never before, but he also doesn’t shy away from more melodic parts that may not yet be his strength but still feel welcome and add a welcome variety.

Many supreme artists come to mind: Devin Townsend, Voivod, Watchtower, Sieges Even. And yet Retrace My Fragments never come across as a rip-off. Their more extreme approach makes their sound more modern, and the perfect production helps to emphasise the genius of the music.

The last regular track Universal Ties is with nine minutes running time the record’s magnum opus and shows the band from their most insane side yet. All the songs are brimming each one with more ideas than your general metal band packs on an entire album, but this piece will leave you just speechless. You really have to listen to this for yourself because words can’t do any justice in this case.

Considering that death metal was a very primitive moment in the first place, it’s stupefying to learn what it can evolve to. This is music of the highest progressive order, never afraid of well-placed experiments, offering more than one hour of music that makes you wonder how the musicians are able to construct such a complex structure. Ethereal Flux is perfection, despite some very minor flaw that might surface here and there, and should be consumed by every connoisseur of intelligent metal music. - disagreement.net

Today I have the pleasure of writing about, without a doubt, one of the most complex albums that I’ve had to deal with it in recent years. This honor is bestowed upon Ethereal Flux by the Luxembourgish band Retrace My Fragments. Their first full length is so loaded with creativity and craziness, of the good kind, that I feel like the next few paragraphs won’t even scratch the surface…but I’ll give it a shot.

The quintet plays progressive death metal, and the guys take both words very seriously: on an instrumental level it’s literally impossible to count the amount of tempo changes, both brutal and melodic riffs and mind-blowing solos…and that’s just the string department. The drums are a never-ending barrage of double bass and blast beats, which are completely unexpectedly broken by groovy parts.

The whole production has a very clean and slightly artificial sound to it; to me that is part of the band’s plan though, since it gives the whole thirteen songs a very spacey-feeling which happens to be the theme of the album, but more about that later. It is also noteworthy that the songs all flow seamlessly into each other and create a complete immersion into the music. However, it also makes it harder to distinguish songs from one another but, again, I think that is part of the idea of making it one entire experience.

The vocals are just as multifaceted as the instrumental parts, with mostly really deep growls, interlaced with screams and occasional clean singing. The latter, I have to admit, could have been a bit more prevalent since I really enjoyed them. As mentioned earlier, the central theme of these sixty minutes is space, which is the setting for a very intricate story that I can only recommend giving a read in the booklet. It is, however, useful if you understand both English and French since the lyrics are in both languages.

One other noteworthy mention is the instrumental interlude Quiescence, which just blew me away…and I’m not even entirely sure why. Something about the melody and interplay of instruments just gives me the chills.

As a closing statement, I’m gonna say that Ethereal Flux is definitely not an album that you will be able to appreciate, or even comprehend, after just one listen-through. It’s so jam-packed with details of every kind that even after ten times, you will still discover new things…and that’s exactly what makes it so special. So, if you are willing to spend time with a record, I can guarantee that you will be rewarded. For more information, be sure to visit the band’s Facebook page and to get an impression of their style be sure to listen to the song below. Last but not least, the band is holding their release party on March 22nd at Rockhal in Esch-Belval, so be sure to move your bum there if you want to be progged. - El Gore

RETRACE MY FRAGMENTS existe depuis 2006, nous vient du Luxembourg et sort ici avec ce " vertizontal " son premier vrai skeud, après une démo 4 titres sortie en 2006, regroupant 7 titres d'un brutal hardcore des plus abrasifs. Ici, c'est 100% bastonage sans concession, ça rentre dans le lard et ça ne fait pas de détail. On pense de suite à THE RED CHORD, ALL SHALL PERISH ou aux défunts INSIDE CONFLICT, tu vois le genre. Du bon gros brutal hardcore mâtiné de death qui buzz et qui tâche. Ca bourdonne, ça tambourine, ça savate, ça tranche, ça lacère, oui mon gars, c'est comme ça et pas autrement. C'est gras comme une bonne grosse tartine de saindou relevé au jus d'ail pour donner du piquant. Ca joue vite, bien et fort, ça latte de bout en bout, et la cadence infernale ne redescend que très, très, mais alors très rarement (cf " Les Saisons du Cœur "), juste le temps pour l'auditeur de reprendre un peu d'air avant de te réenfoncer illico la gueule sous une avalanche de riffs saignants, de beuglements meurtriers et de double assassine.
Du gros son donc avec une excellente prod qui sert au mieux les 7 excellents titres de ce maxi plus que très prometteur pour le jeune combo luxembourgeois qui fera avec certitude reparler de lui.
Du bon je te dis.

(Chronique réalisée par Ciryl)


Date de sortie: Fin 2008
Label/Distributeur: Autoproduction
- Nawak Posse

RETRACE MY FRAGMENTS existe depuis 2006, nous vient du Luxembourg et sort ici avec ce " vertizontal " son premier vrai skeud, après une démo 4 titres sortie en 2006, regroupant 7 titres d'un brutal hardcore des plus abrasifs. Ici, c'est 100% bastonage sans concession, ça rentre dans le lard et ça ne fait pas de détail. On pense de suite à THE RED CHORD, ALL SHALL PERISH ou aux défunts INSIDE CONFLICT, tu vois le genre. Du bon gros brutal hardcore mâtiné de death qui buzz et qui tâche. Ca bourdonne, ça tambourine, ça savate, ça tranche, ça lacère, oui mon gars, c'est comme ça et pas autrement. C'est gras comme une bonne grosse tartine de saindou relevé au jus d'ail pour donner du piquant. Ca joue vite, bien et fort, ça latte de bout en bout, et la cadence infernale ne redescend que très, très, mais alors très rarement (cf " Les Saisons du Cœur "), juste le temps pour l'auditeur de reprendre un peu d'air avant de te réenfoncer illico la gueule sous une avalanche de riffs saignants, de beuglements meurtriers et de double assassine.
Du gros son donc avec une excellente prod qui sert au mieux les 7 excellents titres de ce maxi plus que très prometteur pour le jeune combo luxembourgeois qui fera avec certitude reparler de lui.
Du bon je te dis.

(Chronique réalisée par Ciryl)


Date de sortie: Fin 2008
Label/Distributeur: Autoproduction
- Nawak Posse

Apart from being a renowned chef, Antonio Martija is one of the most characteristic frontmen in Luxembourg, having being a part of the metalcore scene even before it had that name. His last band Ganesha was one of those bands everybody loved but who eventually didn't make it as big as they deserved, and then disbanded. Maybe it's unfair to pinpoint a band to its singer, but somehow in this case, it makes sense, as his new outfit Retrace My Fragments continue exactly where his former band left. The only difference is: five years have since passed, and what was mindblowingly original in the early 2000s has in the meantime been made popular by bands like Between The Buried And Me and The Red Chord, artists who have a definite influence on Retrace My Fragments.
This means you get mathcore metal of the most uncompromising kind, with Martija hysterically bellowing his soul out of his body, while the musicians are blasting through hyperfast and just as complex song structures. Half a decade ago, this would have been revolutionary, but nowadays, the competition has become fiercer, and it's not so easy anymore to stand out in this admittedly very demanding genre.
The songs are full of ideas and variety, the guitars add enough harmony to make this more than just instrumental show off, but the production lacks the power and transparency of the more successful followers of this genre, which eventually strips the music a little of its potential. If Retrace My Fragments add a little more dynamics to their music and allow for sometimes more moderate parts, their extreme side would be emphasised even more.
That notwithstanding, Vertizontal is already a very solid debut that occasionally suffers from a not yet professional sound, but the instrumental abilities are without a doubt. And that Martija is one of the most gifted and scariest vocalists in Luxembourg is also beyond discussion. - Disagreement.net

Apart from being a renowned chef, Antonio Martija is one of the most characteristic frontmen in Luxembourg, having being a part of the metalcore scene even before it had that name. His last band Ganesha was one of those bands everybody loved but who eventually didn't make it as big as they deserved, and then disbanded. Maybe it's unfair to pinpoint a band to its singer, but somehow in this case, it makes sense, as his new outfit Retrace My Fragments continue exactly where his former band left. The only difference is: five years have since passed, and what was mindblowingly original in the early 2000s has in the meantime been made popular by bands like Between The Buried And Me and The Red Chord, artists who have a definite influence on Retrace My Fragments.
This means you get mathcore metal of the most uncompromising kind, with Martija hysterically bellowing his soul out of his body, while the musicians are blasting through hyperfast and just as complex song structures. Half a decade ago, this would have been revolutionary, but nowadays, the competition has become fiercer, and it's not so easy anymore to stand out in this admittedly very demanding genre.
The songs are full of ideas and variety, the guitars add enough harmony to make this more than just instrumental show off, but the production lacks the power and transparency of the more successful followers of this genre, which eventually strips the music a little of its potential. If Retrace My Fragments add a little more dynamics to their music and allow for sometimes more moderate parts, their extreme side would be emphasised even more.
That notwithstanding, Vertizontal is already a very solid debut that occasionally suffers from a not yet professional sound, but the instrumental abilities are without a doubt. And that Martija is one of the most gifted and scariest vocalists in Luxembourg is also beyond discussion. - Disagreement.net

This evening’s last candidate was RETRACE MY FRAGMENTS, surely Luxemburg’s weirdest metal act. This band likes complicated structures that you normally hear from artists like Between The Buried And Me and Dillinger Escape Plan. I really adore these progressive structures and also the strange sounds done by singer Marti. It’s always fascinating to look at the hands that are moving very quickly on the guitar and bass. It’s a bit sorry that Claude has switched from bass to guitar, but he’s a genius on every instrument. This was again fantastic music for your brain that is not so easy to digest. - Disagreement.net

Au premier abord, on a bien du mal à deviner ce qui se cache derrière ce disque tant la jolie pochette ne reprend pas les codes du genre, et c'est du reste, assez révélateur de la démarche du groupe luxembourgeois. Il suffit de déplier le livret de Vertizontal pour décrypter les intentions et découvrir ce qu'est Retrace My Fragments : un groupe qui s'approprie et manie la brutalité exacerbée (cf. le crane au pied de l'arbre) mais aspire aussi à des bouffés d'oxygènes lors d'incartades en plein air synonymes de velléités mélodiques et de tentations vers des territoires plus nuancés (cf. les branches qui tentent d'atteindre le plafond du ciel bleu, la partie visible de l'artwork). Attention tout de même, le menu reste globalement plutôt violent et "Compass" vient nous asséner quelques arguments musclés et vindicatifs : un binôme vocal aigu/gras, du gros riffs outrageusement agressifs et bipolaire (lent puis fulgurant) dans ses intentions, une section rythmique au taquet et la puissance complètement sur-dimensionnée d'une tribu de sumotoris en séance de footing. Le déluge sonore se poursuit encore quelques minutes et on est d'autant plus agréablement surpris lorsque le groupe s'octroie une pause salutaire autant pour eux que pour nous sur "Les saisons du cœur" : une mélodie qui s'éclaircit avec la température musicale, le français fait son apparition pour un moment de poésie libératrice puis le naturel revient au pas de course avec ce death metal cinglant et cathartique. Le groupe renouera avec les accalmies sur un "Chronocrisis" en forme de perfusion de morphine après l'opération chirurgicale sans anesthésie qu'est Vertizontal. On ne peut qu'inciter Retrace My Fragments à approfondir leur singularité, entre ombre et lumière, sur leurs prochaines productions. Vertizontal est vraiment un très bon album qui exige un goût très prononcé pour le métal extrême même si la part d'accroches mélodiques tendrait à rendre la bestiole plutôt digeste pour le fan de metal lambda. Une affaire à suivre.

Cactus
Mai 2009 - W-Fenec

Au premier abord, on a bien du mal à deviner ce qui se cache derrière ce disque tant la jolie pochette ne reprend pas les codes du genre, et c'est du reste, assez révélateur de la démarche du groupe luxembourgeois. Il suffit de déplier le livret de Vertizontal pour décrypter les intentions et découvrir ce qu'est Retrace My Fragments : un groupe qui s'approprie et manie la brutalité exacerbée (cf. le crane au pied de l'arbre) mais aspire aussi à des bouffés d'oxygènes lors d'incartades en plein air synonymes de velléités mélodiques et de tentations vers des territoires plus nuancés (cf. les branches qui tentent d'atteindre le plafond du ciel bleu, la partie visible de l'artwork). Attention tout de même, le menu reste globalement plutôt violent et "Compass" vient nous asséner quelques arguments musclés et vindicatifs : un binôme vocal aigu/gras, du gros riffs outrageusement agressifs et bipolaire (lent puis fulgurant) dans ses intentions, une section rythmique au taquet et la puissance complètement sur-dimensionnée d'une tribu de sumotoris en séance de footing. Le déluge sonore se poursuit encore quelques minutes et on est d'autant plus agréablement surpris lorsque le groupe s'octroie une pause salutaire autant pour eux que pour nous sur "Les saisons du cœur" : une mélodie qui s'éclaircit avec la température musicale, le français fait son apparition pour un moment de poésie libératrice puis le naturel revient au pas de course avec ce death metal cinglant et cathartique. Le groupe renouera avec les accalmies sur un "Chronocrisis" en forme de perfusion de morphine après l'opération chirurgicale sans anesthésie qu'est Vertizontal. On ne peut qu'inciter Retrace My Fragments à approfondir leur singularité, entre ombre et lumière, sur leurs prochaines productions. Vertizontal est vraiment un très bon album qui exige un goût très prononcé pour le métal extrême même si la part d'accroches mélodiques tendrait à rendre la bestiole plutôt digeste pour le fan de metal lambda. Une affaire à suivre.

Cactus
Mai 2009 - W-Fenec

After a few months of abstinence, local deathcore masters Retrace My Fragments presented themselves with a new guitarist and a new drummer. If they offered uncompromising technical extreme metal on their debut CD, the quintet showed today that they have worked hard on their sound in the last half year. Increasing their dynamics by adding more melodic parts, it’s clear that the band tries to be the Luxembourgish analogue of Between The Buried And Me, and it works. You get most fun out of their music when you concentrate your eyes on the musicians’ fingers, especially bass player Claude treats his instrument with a virtuosity and velocity that should give the girls in the audience a shiver. No longer content at being a mere metalcore band, Retrace My Fragments have transformed into a fully fledged progressive metal band for the space age! I was completely awed. - Disagreement.net