Review: Deafkids ‘Cicatrizes Do Futuro’
I’ve been aware of and a fan of Deafkidsfor quite a number of years and had the honour of seeing them with a former friend at Wharf Chambers in Leeds back in 2022. So, apologies in advance if this review appears in any way biased as a result.
Formed in 2010, members Douglas Leal (vocals/guitar/electronics/samplers/percussion/artwork) and Marian Sarine (drums/percussion/electronics/bass) started life as a fairly standard hardcore/crust-punk outfit on 2010’s Six Heretic Anthems For The Deaf EP before gradually starting to incorporate more experimental elements into their sound.
In some ways, the duo’s career trajectory is not uncommon for bands in the hardcore scene; take the evolution of Black Flag and Neurosis, for instance; coincidentally, they’re on the latter’s Neurot Recordings.
Cicatrizes Do Futuro is their first non-collaborative work since 2019’s Metaprogramação,and as the band states, ‘Conceptually, the album is a visceral diagnosis of a world intoxicated by its own fictions of power, tracing the anatomy of a systemic grand deception and exploring its mechanics of psychological, social, and material domination…’. I’m looking forward to this.
Parasita recalls space-rock behemoths such as Hawkwind and Tab era Monster Magnet when the latter were creating glorious walls of sound as opposed to the by comparison standard rock ‘n’ roll fare later on. Add in the band’s love of psych influences and you have all the ingredients necessary for the perfect opener. Cicatrizes sees dark industrial and EBM present ala Skinny Puppy, as well as Sepultura when that band started to branch out around the time of Roots, what with the tribal drumming played with as much dexterity and skill as Igor Cavalera. Simply brilliant.
Killing Joke had a tendency to dabble with dub/reggae and so do Deafkids seemingly on Profecia. Mix this up with ‘Joke style post-punk and it’s like Youth himself had a hand in creating this monstrous yet immensely rewarding sonic gem. Simulacro is immensely more aggressive and demonstrates that while the band may have matured musically over the years, they haven’t completely abandoned their hardcore roots; they’ve just refined them into something more intriguing than what say the likes of Terror churn out. Stunning.
Immersive, exciting, adventurous, awe-inspiring…
Advertência, by comparison, has more of a hypnotic effect, lulling you in with its use of drones and that’s what I love about the band: the ability to switch effortlessly between musical styles and genres with relative ease. Reflexo ups the tempo considerably and has more of a frantic feel that makes you think the duo were in a rush when they were composing this particular number, though it must be stressed, not to its detriment. Feitiço sees a more noise-rock component entering proceedings, excitingly blended with punk and techno and serves as a nice companion piece to the previous track.
Possessão Coletiva will have you up and grooving along to its infectiously funky beats and rhythms, which are the driving force of the music. So much so, it’s easy to forget that other instrumentation are present. If this was the kind of fare present at clubs in Ibiza, I’d have been more inclined to attend as a teenager, see, THIS is how dance music (to use its generic name) should be done, an absolute personal favourite and standout. Finally, Em Transe recalls the apocalyptic post-metal sounds of the aforementioned Neurosis, which is terrifying to behold yet serves as an entirely appropriate conclusion to the record.
Immersive, exciting, adventurous, awe-inspiring… there aren’t enough superlatives in the English language to describe how good Cicatrizes Do Futuro is and Deafkids are. Public Enemy were wrong, do believe the hype.
Label: Neurot Recordings
Band Links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
Scribed by: Reza Mills
