ROT "Rabid Outbreak Through" & "pRovOcaTiv" (RIA)

ROT have now come to be a much different band. Listening to their last (disappointing for my likes) album called “The Time Has Come”, I grabbed the chance to write a few things about the two first excretions of the band. Well, on 2002 ROT introduce theirselves. They used to play on words about their name, choosing at that time the “Rabid Outbreak Through” as the meaning of it. Their debut album contained nine tracks three of which were interludes and one instrumental. I’ll start with the interludes which typically (or not) complete a trilogy under the name “Elegy”. El-, -eg-, -Y. Even through these, the various influences of the band are discrete while they’re creating based on the Byzantine music. Even if interludes aren’t that much considered as regular songs, the mentioned ones add atmospherere to the record’s climax which by itself is multiformative. What about the songs with the common norm of composure? “Common”… God wot! For some reason, even if it sounds easy for someone to discern the influences of the band, ROT ever acted as a whole. They had identity. This could have been defined by the details such as the divine efficiency of Mathew on drums (he might be the greek Danny Carey) or the DSP-Fx noise disturbances of Buttons. Armed with a measurable (at least) singer like Payn is, they composed with passion and performed amazingly five hymns of modern heavy music. I’d like to mention the way that Said has recorded his basslines, too. They reminded me of “Three Dollar Bill, Yall $”‘s Sam Rivers. Do not be disturbed. I despise Limp Bizkit, too but that has nothing to do with the abilities of Sam Rivers. ROT had everything. From noise soundscapes among the tracks (and especially in the album’s final track, “Tax”) and ambient impulsions to the spine of mainstream musical parts. Do not miscomprehend the term “mainstream”. I mean that songs like “Dark Lashes” or “Leave Me Alone” could have been way too famous if they were created by a ‘big’ name of the universal scene. To conclude with, the debut album of the band is exquisite…

…Something that “pRovOcaTiv” album (released one year later, 2003) vanished. In this record, the line-up is still the same. From the introducing melody of “Jeremiad” you can sense that the band’s sound is more personal. I’d dare call it unsociable. A pleiads of AMAZING composures follows, accredited to the upper musical level. I remember meeting Payn at Patton/Rahzel live show, years ago, telling me that he was there for Mike Patton (such as I did). This may betray one (among many) influence concerning the unorthodox way they used to build their songs. Unorthodox like the way Faith No More or System of a Down doid through the years. Every fucking melody and musical part sounded reasonable through each track’s substance. The record’s layout still is one of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen. In fact, the members patent the first album’s ideas but accredit them more freely and foot-loose. This album hides wonderful moments like the ending of “Unwind” track (Mathew here plays smartly and shuts down evvery wannabe octopus-like drummer) or the two finishing parts of “Nonentity in Blue” track which could be the soundtrack of vortex or choking. Moreover, ROT dared writing greek lyrics (Washes Me Out) and chorused them beautifully. THOSE ROT were one of the bands you could discriminate among the ones of the domestic scene. “Orgasm rooted in denial…”

Miltos XIC