BEDSORE - Dreaming The Strife For Love LP (Bone/Beer Merge Vinyl)

Beer/Bone Merge vinyl in a matte sleeve containing a two-sided colored inlay card.

Italy's Bedsore returns with their second full-length record, "Dreaming the Strife for Love." Here, the band continues their experimental and avant-garde pursuit of progressive death metal that will surely leave many refreshed at this highly-original project.

This record and band can be difficult to describe in exact terms as there is much going on. On a broad level, this is Pink Floyd meets Cynic/Atheist meets Blood Incantation (a band that has also gone into more experimental territory as of late). Some of the more "traditionally" metal moments occur in places like tracks two or three, where we hear distorted guitars over blasting drum beats. The vocals behind these moments though have a less death metal tinge and give the tracks an almost black metal sound as they vocalist uses more of a shriek--as opposed to a growl--for their style. These elements only play a small role in the album, however. Throughout nearly the full runtime, Bedsore makes use of a variety of instruments not typically included in a metal album, including synthesizers and a Hammond organ--the same type of organ used on the likes of "The Dark Side of the Moon" and Herbie Hancock's "Head Hunters." In fact, there are several lengthy sections that are made of almost solely of these aspects. Notably, the track "Realm of Eleuterillide" has a length progressive/jazzy intro and outro, with just a short metal portion in the middle. This brings me to the one thing that could potentially be a downside to "Dreaming the Strife for Love" for some: this album feels more like a progressive/jazzy album with just some metal moments than it does as a metal album with a progressive hue. At times I felt that the band was leaning more into progressive rock than they were metal. That doesn't make it a bad album, of course. But this is supposed to be a metal project at the end of the day. It's a generally enjoyable experience, and I love seeing bands trying new things, but it may not be one that I return to too often personally. Still, I rank this album high because I feel I must set aside my own personal tastes to recognize the real talent and originality on display here.

Bedsore may not be everyone's cup of tea, but if this sort of experimentation appeals to you, then you are probably going to be in love with this release.