Year Of Metal #096: Sigh - Imaginary Sonicscape
Now we’re having some fun. I’ve listened to a decent amount of metal that could be described as goofy, knowingly or otherwise, but nothing has yet reached such heights of playful ridiculousness. Sigh are a venerable Japanese act with roots in black metal - they were initially down with the Scandinavian lot, signing to Euronymous’ label in the early ‘90s. By 2001’s Imaginary Sonicscape, it seems they had grown far beyond the boundaries of genre. The result is a sprawling, restless record that’s a complete madcap mess, and a blast to listen to as a result.
They walk a thin line - they’re not so far off being so goofy that they’re annoying - but their charm overrides my concerns on that front (my favourite detail is their acrostic naming of albums - first an S title, then an I, a G, an H, and repeat). The riff on opener “Corpsecry - Angelfall” is surprisingly chunky for a record I’d seen described as atmospheric black metal. Within 20 seconds you realise it’s going to be no such thing, courtesy of the frantic keyboards (think Metropolis Zone from Sonic 2). Band leader Mirai Kawashima puts in a spiritedly demonic performance on the vocals, but this is delirious haunted house stuff, rather than real menace.
That goes double for the delightfully dumb “Nietzschean Conspiracy”, an electronic-laden creepfest that, to use another ‘90s gaming reference, puts me in mind of the GoldenEye 64 soundtrack. The buzzing synths and light smatterings of wah guitar aren’t exactly metal, but it’s good fun in small bursts.
Imaginary Sonicscape is all about an overload of ideas, so it stands to reason that, when Sigh are packing good ideas into a song, it’s a case of The more the merrier. “Scarlet Dream” is a standout, with everything they try somehow coming off. The stark percussion and grinding guitars toy with an industrial sound, and they stumble upon a simple but glorious descending riff that they deploy just the right number of times. Best of all is the chorus, on which Kawashima’s cackling vocals are bolstered by an eerie woman singing goodness knows what. This is fantastic spooky stuff with the silliness dial calibrated exactly right.
I like “Dreamsphere (Return to the Chaos)” a lot too. The instrumentation across the album is pretty diverse, but the layered strings backing and synth lead (possibly even a good old Stylophone) mesh together well. It’s a bit psychedelic and discombobulating, with the wordless, wailed backing vocals a lovely touch. They follow this up with “Ecstatic Transformation”, which sticks out like a sore thumb for being a straightforward rocker. This one’s great too, especially the lengthy instrumental section at the middle. They strip away the daftness, first for a great solo, then a lovely mellow passage with pizzicato strings. The swirling organ sounds fantastic too, real Iron Butterfly vibes.
I don’t know if this is an album I’d return to an immense amount on the whole - when you go this alternative, you’re likely to swing for the fences and miss on occasion. But the best stuff on here is so freewheeling and imaginative that I’d certainly be interested in hearing what else Sigh have to offer - especially the down the line black metal gear, which would seem properly bizarre after this.
