SCREW - Fusion of the Core

SCREW’s first album contains twelve songs and is rather like a combination of two mini-albums: one original and the other a best-of. With new songs, as well as old hits that veteran fans will be happy to hear, this is a great album for those who haven't previously heard the band.

The album opens with F.O.C., a song of few lyrics, Matrix-like energy and a surprising techno beat. As an instrumental piece on the album, it’s much more interesting than earlier ones like Shown Silently or Finale of Screw, but as a song on its own it may disappoint due to its lack of chorus and singing.

While F.O.C. does nothing to demonstrate the band’s musical style, the next track, Death’s door, is everything we expect from the band: a great mix of the melodic and ominous, guttural screaming, menacing guitar riffs and mercurial drumming. Creative, full of shifts and without awkwardness, the song is cohesive and uniquely SCREW.

Following Death’s door is the previous night of hell. Consistently dark, heavy and angry, SCREW is in their element. Byo's groaning and growling make an appearance, and punctuating screams form the rhythm. The very original chorus, with its aggressively climbing and soaring vocals, makes the song a hit. However, they could do without the roaring, which was rather croaked out and a little annoying.

The fourth song, Deformity to wake, is noteworthy for its display of Byo’s vocals, namely his talent for twisting a sung note into a scream or a bark. Some beautifully anguished screams during the bridge also add to the song. While the chorus is not catchy or memorable enough to make it one of the best tracks on the album, it aptly demonstrates the general style and attitude of SCREW.

Next up is St. Highway, a love song! Optimistic and bright, it opens with a guitar and beat that propagates a light happy feel. The verses are not without some anger in the singing, but the music is consistently cheery. Also notable is the guitar bridge which plays its own separate love song. While St. Highway seems out of place on the otherwise dark album, it proudly and successfully asserts that SCREW can do more than just angst.

The band returns to their angrier sound with BABY STAR, which has a chorus too much like Dir en grey's Child Prey. The overlapped screams don’t do much to improve it. However, the bridge - with its screaming, growling, and intriguing guitar playing - makes up for the lackluster chorus. The song also presents some interesting rhythm changes that propels it to the unexpected conclusion of maniacal laughter transformed into choking. Overall it’s a complex song that will probably grow on you.

Track number seven is a roller coaster ride. Shikou wo kuruwasu hankai na tenbin is a song of many stages and details, even by SCREW's standards. Initial stage: haunted house! The verses incorporate ghostly moaning and shrieking, as well as demonic growling. When the song slows drastically, Byo sings a little ballad before the tempo picks up again for the bouncy chorus. Next comes an equally cheery guitar solo before the tempo slows again and Byo is accompanied by a soft piano. Aided by violins, the song maintains a wistful tone and an atmosphere of anguish. Final stage: rage! The song dives back to heavy guitars, screaming punctuation and Byo’s demonic growling voice.

The next song is a re-release but is quite possibly the best on the album: hakusetsu to mau. It opens with a catchy but poignant piano motif. Along with the piano, Yuuto’s bass is prominent in the verses, and the guitar strums out a light note every now and then. The lead-in to the chorus strongly resembles its counterparts in CELESTIAL BLISS and Sadie’s Silent Eve, but it’s no great detriment. Though inspiring and light-weight, the chorus is still curiously dark, and in its second half the techno-like drums speed up. As usual, the guitar bridge is excellent, but also inserted throughout are some wind instruments and beautifully sung falsetto bits. Concluding the final refrain, Byo throws a fascinating trill into his voice. Despite being a ballad-type song, hakusetsu to mau is probably the jewel of the album, though hardcore SCREW fans may find some of the new tracks more exciting.

One candidate for the hardcore fans might be Hakanaki wa chiri yuku utsukushiki reiraku to..., a gem which shows the true power of Byo’s vocals. Despite being a slower song, it's heavier in tone and more aggressive than the previous track, and it’s carried by great emotional vocals throughout, especially when the melody soars poignantly. The electronic voice following the chorus is another treat, and Byo’s capacity for expressing anguish may be depicted best in this guttural, growl-singing. The guitar bridge beautifully matches those anguished emotions. Gloomy and relatively slow, this mysterious song manages to be one of the best on the album.

Next are two songs from Heartless Screen, the first of which is -goku-. With eerie vocals and guitars, an emotional chorus accompanied by violins and a dark abrupt finish, this song is another hit. -goku- is followed by the penultimate song Entrance to defeat. Fast-paced and ominous, the song displays some interesting screaming techniques, one of which sounds rather like a sped up tornado alarm. Accompanied by violins, the slower chorus is anguished but beautiful like the guitar bridge, and Jin’s skills are showcased with some complex drum passages.

The last song, Yume no kanata e, is consistently fast and bouncy. With a catchy chorus and zany guitar and bass lines, the song’s focus is energy and bounce more than emotion. Uncharacteristically inspiring and light, the song successfully demonstrates SCREW’s flexibility in style.

Overall, the album has several things going for it: consistently excellent guitar bridges, a classical sensibility from the wind instruments and piano and the inclusion of some lighter songs which saves the listener from a tiresomely loud album. Secondly, Byo demonstrates a substantial repertoire of vocal talents from mid-note barks to trills to siren-like screaming. Thirdly, in contrast to some of the band’s later music which becomes more Sadie-influenced, Byo and the gang make a real effort to be uniquely SCREW on this album. To get to know this band, Fusion of the Core is a good place to start.