The Lovecraftian Horrors - Code: Pandorum

This is it. This is the dubstep avant garde.

Drawing direct inspiration from prominent horror writer H. P. Lovecraft, "The Lovecraftian Horrors" is no joke. Code: Pandorum (aka INHUMAN) has establised himself as a strong deathstep artist and a prolific album writer over the years, pushing his dark, gritty brand of deathstep amongst some of the best in the scene. And out of all the albums in his massive catalogue, this one might just be the most 'out there'. Standing at a staggering 28-track-long tracklist, "The Lovecraftian Horrors" is an album to be reckoned with. There is absolutely zero care for theatrics, or pizzazz, or cinematics, and Code: Pandorum makes that very very clear. It's not just 28 tracks; it's 28 tracks of facemelting, raw, harsh, unrelenting deathstep that gives you very little time to think and even less time to steel your ears before plunging into this screaming world of horrors. Yes, the intro track "Ink" may not seem like much, but it's a false precedent, and the rest of the album follows a very simple formula—a simple offdrop, a simple buildup, and the most twisted, heaviest drop possible—and it just keeps on giving. There's no technical mastery, there's no heed to any style switchups, only the menacing, crushing bass and the everpresent sinister atmosphere that perpetuates the entire project in horror-inspired vocal samples and eerie sound design choices. And though the sampling can be a tad cheesy in places, it's mixed in well in other places, and in others still it can be downright provocative and unsettling (in both a good and a bad way)—besides, it doesn't even matter, really, because all is forgotten when Code: Pandorum works his devastating black magic in the drops. "The Lovecraftian Horrors" is an album that knows what it is, and does what it does, and there's nothing you can do about it but listen in awe and fear. 

Though, just because it's so unique, "The Lovecraftian Horrors" doesn't get to escape a criticism of its repetitiveness. 2 hours long of the same shockingly loud deathstep style? Granted, there are a few switchups, like the DnB of "Neo" or the trap of "Deadly Dolls", but the vast majority of it is the same stabby, or abrasive, or otherwise heavy deathstep. I suspect the concept would suffer from having more diversity, but there is a point in the album where my ears stop working and succumb to the endless onslaught of sonic turmoil. It's difficult to ignore the fact that what Code: Pandorum has produced here is undoubtedly impressive, but it's not without a few inevitable flaws.