King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard - Murder Of The Universe (Album Review)

 

King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard - Murder Of The Universe

(2017)


My copy: 2017 press on vomit splatter vinyl by ATO Records.


2017 was a prolific year for Australia’s King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard, marking the release of four full-lengths in the wake of their meteoric rise to popularity sometime around 2016’s Nonagon Infinity. Following microtonal experiments with the comparatively cliche narrative prog album Murder Of The Universe, the band had found themselves firmly settled into gimmick territory. The idea of each album in a band’s catalog being uniquely thematic isn’t inherently a bad idea, but when said band releases material so often, the charm is destined to wear thin. 

Murder Of The Universe isn’t immediately eye-rolling, and its concept is intriguing enough that it warrants a fair shot - though it is apparent as soon as “Altered Beast I” blasts off that not much has changed between Nonagon Infinity and this. The dignified, monotone narration turns further away from Tolkien-esque high-fantasy to sweaty basement DnD talk each time Stu Mackenzie fires off one of his signature “Woo”s. The entire first chapter of the album is made up of this “Altered Beast” saga, chronicling the protagonist’s transformation from human to blood-thirsty monster. Some of the narration is intriguing and evocative of Lovecraft, etc. though the cock-rock/prog genre fusion situated at the root of the music distracts from what could have been a proper immersive adventure. 

There are some clever rhythmic shifts and lavish arpeggios that hint at an elevated mood, but this portion of the album begs the question: is this really different enough from Nonagon Infinity to warrant a full length release? The second chapter works in some hideous throat singing and poorly integrated Midi instruments that would only impress the most ignorant of comic book nerds, but nicely culminates in the record’s first truly great song: “The Balrog,” which ups the tension with the most frantic pace yet, suiting the repetitive, anxious chorus perfectly. Murder Of The Universe works when they discard the burning guitar bends and typical delay effects for more esoteric synth melodies - something “The Balrog” successfully pulls off. 

Part 3 welcomes the most interesting shift in the music and theming. Once the malevolent A.I. (or I suppose he’s a cyborg?) Han-Tyumi takes over narration duties, saving the regular vocals for only a couple of songs, you realize that the mis-matched singing style is really one of the biggest deterrents to the mood. The second great song does, however, contain more singing - though “Digital Black’s” delightful synth counter-melodies elevate the track nicely with dynamic chugging and vocalizing. “Vomit Coffin” feels confused about whether it wants to be metal or not (something they’d embrace later) but the whole story culminates in the title track, delving further into disgusting lyrical topics (a sentient computer that engulfs an entire universe in vomit) that somehow spark a glimmer of genuine creativity a la a sort of b-list horror movie concept. 

Murder Of The Universe has a special kind of potential - much of it feels bogged down by what feels like a lazy reworking of older song ideas, but the essence of greatness exists within its narrative microcosm. While it is impressive that King Gizzard largely works and releases material independently, their sort of maximalist release schedule feels like much more of a hindrance than an advantage, and Murder Of The Universe probably could have been a much more intriguing release had it been given more time to develop a sufficiently distinct personality. While obviously the result of talent and hard work, even in 2017 it felt as though the world could use a break from King Gizzard's endless stream of material; lest their endless output swallow the universe whole like their pal Han Tyumi and his robot puke.

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