Never before had I met a Promo God-designated genre-tag so perfect: “silliness.” La Suspendida is a wildly experimental Silent Pendulum-backed collaboration of four artists – and I’m not gonna pretend I know each of the act’s respective history or discography. Mostly based in Brooklyn, Kilter is a jazz metal trio featuring Imperial Triumphant drummer Kenny Grohowski, Andromeda Anarchia is an opera soprano and also a member of the opera/black metal Folterkammer project, the Growlers Choir is a Montreal-based group of metal vocalists (including growlers of Basalte, Spectral Wound, and Entheos, and others),1 and Seven)Suns is a “dystopian” string quartet dedicated to translating metal to strings.2 You’re in for a night at the opera – FROM HELL (sorta).
Still with me? Cool. La Suspendida not only reconciles its manic range of personnel with the whackiest breed of music this side of the Hudson, but it also sports an equally ridiculous theme and story to go along with it. Inspired by a true and truly fucked up story, Cuban divorcee Maria Elena Milagros dies of tuberculosis in Key West and is suspended in the state between life and death due to the sexual acts of obsessed doctor with mommy issues Carl Tanzler. A tale of heritage, forbidden love, and of course necrophilia is translated into 80 minutes of death metal/ambient/jazz/opera that recalls the feelings of mania and insanity. Its ambition is noteworthy, but uh, what the fuck?
If you thought a Folterkammer–Naked City–The Lovecraft Sextet knife fight behind the old Kmart while Corpsegrinder watches, you’re not far off. “The Ballad of Maria Elena” and “Arguments at the Gates of Death, Part 1 – You can’t drag me through your gate” are a solid duo encapsulating La Suspendida, with jazzy bass and Andromeda Anarchia’s dramatic belts guiding (representing Maria’s voice), sound collapses into death metal growls (Death and the dead) and wonky rhythms, while the steadily darkening strings of Seven)Suns add a distinct madness. While metal brutality is a forgone element, when Kilter’s groove finds its footing, truly remarkable moments spawn, such as the instantly memorable “Overture – Death & Transfiguration,” the waltzing “Song of the Countess” and the groovy “My Corpse, Your Dungeon.” When Seven)Suns guide things in tracks like “Limbo – A Place with No Weather” and “Afterglow,” droning ambiance and Andromeda Anarchia’s charismatic belts and maniacal screams take precedence, but they are a hypnotizing duo that accurately portrays the afterlife’s foggy nature.
As a whole, La Suspendida’s fusion of the Big Apple urban jazz vibe with classical opera archaism is strange, but with every other kitchen sink tossed in you’ve got yourself an audio conundrum. There are too many ambient tracks, and some songs just don’t land, because there exists no structure, melody, or motif to tether to. “Interlude – Arrival” is too monotonous, “Laudes Mortuorum & Roll Call of the Newly Dead” and “Arguments from the Gates of Death Part 3 – The hypocrites of the light (Tutti)” never quite find their footing in awkward rhythms and all bark, no bite, while “Interlude – Moments of Stillness” feels like an awkward Imperial Triumphant b-side. In terms of contributions, Andromeda Anarchia and Kilter do the heavy lifting, while Seven)Suns could stand more screen time, but Growlers Choir’s howls would translate better in a live setting. Then there are the lyrics, which attempt to paint the necrophiliac doctor in a sympathetic light but end up as painful.3
La Suspendida is a doozy. It’s overlong, imbalanced, inconsistent, full of filler tracks, sorely lacking any brutality, lyrically off-putting and many elements don’t translate well in a recorded setting – also not helped by Sleepytime Gorilla Museum’s formidable comeback and better album. However, there’s just something lovable about La Suspendida’s hodgepodge. When the stars align, it’s truly a monumental force to be reckoned with (“The Ballad of Maria Elena”), and even its more contemplative moments feel intentional and moving. At the end of the day, don’t let the score below make you think that this thing is a doldrum for all its moving parts: it’s truly loveable, colossally ambitious, and starkly awkward. Ultimately, it’s silliness through and through.
Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 9 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Silent Pendulum Records
Websites: kiltertrio.bandcamp.com | www.andromeda-anarchia.com | sevensunsmusic.com | www.growlerschoir.com
Releases Worldwide: March 15th, 2024
