ARTIST: Judgement Day
TITLE: Peacocks / Pink Monsters
LABEL: Self Released
GENRE: Instrumental Rock
BITRATE: 262kbps avg
PLAYTIME: 0h 50m total
RELEASE DATE: 2010-04-13
RIP DATE: 2011-06-19

Track List
----------
1.  Cobra Strike                     3:03
2.  Zombie Rodeo Clown               3:02
3.  Prelude                          1:41
4.  Peacocks / Pink Monsters         4:48
5.  Klagenstuck                      3:31
6.  Death March                      3:47
7.  Barrage                          1:54
8.  Mark Of Vishnu                   4:52
9.  The Constant                     3:12
10. Excelsior                        4:53
11. Improvisation                    6:15
12. Genosha                          9:20

Release Notes:
 
https://www.stringmetal.com/judgementday/

It is almost impossible to talk about stringed instruments in heavy music
without mentioning Apocalyptica. While the Finns may have pioneered cello metal,
their clumsy crossover attempts by way of including popular vocalists make one
yearn for ars gratia artis. Judgement Day is that art, even if they don’t spell
their name the way James Cameron, Christian theologists, or the WWE would.

According to the extensive liner notes, there were initial conflicting visions
in every aspect of the album, from the songwriting to the cover painting. In
both cases, three minds were at work, collaborating as a trio for the first
time. Musically, it blossomed from an in-studio mixture of improvisations,
amidst compositions loosely hammered out in their practice space. As time
progressed, they relied more on “spontaneous inspiration” and “abandoned
traditional song structures and rules”. The three painters were charged by the
band to “create a piece of art with no predetermined vision”, and were
encouraged to continuously layer each other’s work—to not perseverate over any
particular area.

The end result in both cases is beautiful, terrifying, humorous, and above all
else, balanced. Siblings Anton and Lewis Patzner got their start on the streets
of Berkeley, California some eight years ago, and wrote much of the music for
their first release, Dark Opus, to be played as such. Now with metal drummer Jon
Bush in the mix, they add a deeper metallic layer to Lewis’ conservatory-trained
cello and Anton’s Bright Eyes-tempered violin. The music they craft is bold as
it is delicate, demonstrating true innovation with genuine promise for the
future.

Different folks will have their own song preferences, but the album is strong. I
only suggest avoiding “Improvisation” because, although the end product of their
work is excellent, listening to the process felt a bit less compelling. Be sure
to check out the hilarious video for “Cobra Strike” to see how the world might
look if video game ‘heroes’ played violins instead of guitars. And according to
the date on the pseudo-authentic home video in the opening scene, it’s from the
future. Now that’s progressive.