Norwegian quartet Blood Command have a lot to offer, that is, if you love your music laced with frenetic energy. Crossing genres fluidly, the group employ electronics that might suggest Synthpop, though they pummel the senses with a Punk Rock attitude that often leans towards Hardcore stylings. In a musical landscape full of clones, these Norwegians are commanding (pun very much intended) their own subgenre, and they have dubbed it Deathpop.
Reportedly jokingly named for the band members’ fondness for cheesy Action films of the ‘80s, such as 1988’s Bloodsport and 1985’s Commando, Blood Commando formed in 2009 in Bergen, in Southwestern Norway. The band released their full-length debut, Ghostclocks, in 2010, then followed it up immediately with 2012’s Funeral Beach. There was a five-year span before 2017’s Cult Drugs, though nothing has slowed this little band that could.
Critically-acclaimed, the Norwegian Grammy-nominated band have been lauded by the likes of Rock Sound, Kerrang!, and Metal Hammer, to name but a few of their media fandoms. Having shared stages with the eclectic likes of Iron Maiden, Biffy Clyro, Refused, Comeback Kid, Protest The Hero, and Gallows, the quartet have also tackled such esteemed festivals as England’s The Great Escape, Austria’s Nova Rock, and Denmark’s Roskilde. For those keeping score, Blood Command are slated to open for Skindred in Europe in Fall 2019.
It has been a steady upward trajectory for Blood Command — Singer Karina Ljone, Guitarist Yngve Andersen, Bassist Simon Oliver Økland, Drummer Sigurd Haakaas. With three full-length collections, three EPs, and a several radio hits under their collective belt, the band continue to be hungry for more. With their distinctive blend of Punk Rock, Metal, Hardcore, and, gasp, Pop, the band have claimed their place as truly unique. In fact, producer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Andersen, known for his work with Jeroan Drive and Girl Army, aims to cast the net wide, musically speaking. If it’s challenging, infectious, or pummels the senses just right, he is bound to put the Blood Command stamp on it.
So, what do Blood Command sound like? Well, that’s ultimately for you to decide, but it’s something along the lines of The Faint cranked to eleven and headbanging hard enough to end up at the hospital. Take, for example, selections from 2017’s Cult Drugs. There’s the whirling dervish of “Ctrl + Art + Delete” that opens to moments of stunning melody before spiraling right back down into the pits of Metal hell. Meanwhile, the album’s namesake, “Cult Drugs,” goes for anthemic Synthpop, while they rein it in for the catchy, danceable beat of “Quitters Don’t Smoke.” Funky beats permeate the core of the bass-slapper “Nervous Laughter,” and this grittiness explodes into the bratty Punk-laced mayhem of “Gang Signs.”
Mean girls will raise their Metal horns to the sheer sonic venom of “You Can’t Sit With Us,” and this in-your-face attack continues straight into “The Secret Impresses No One.” Ljone is fierce as she leads the boys through the pummeling charge of “White Skin // Tanned Teeth,” which bounces between Pop-Punk-esque infectiousness and Hardcore throttling. If you think the band are growing complacent, forget it — “Initiation Tape #1” shreds with equal parts brash grit and gently soaring melodies. But to prove once and for all that they’re never going to tackle the same tune twice, “(The World Covered In) Purple Shrouds” begins with a trumpet. Yes, trumpet! This leads the band down into a melee that is anchored by that sassy brass and complemented by a melodic wall of sound.
Clearly, when it comes to Blood Command, there’s no pigeon-holing, that’s for damn sure! The Norwegian’s forthcoming 5-song EP, Return of The Arsonist, is expected on April 19th via Fysisk Format. Considered a conceptual successor to “Summon the Arsonists” off the band’s 2011 Hand Us the Alpha Male! EP, if past history means anything it’s guaranteed to be diverse!
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