Divide and Dissolve, aka Takiaya Reed, is still creating some of the loudest, most intense music on the planet. It’s something of an oddity for a label like Bella Union to release music this uncompromising. But this just shows you the appeal of Takaiya and the message she wants to bring to an ever-decaying world. The album title Insatiable came to Takiaya in a dream. “I saw people committing great acts of harm never being happy, and people committing great acts of love, always being happy”. She explains further “People feeding into genocidal energy, depleting all of these resources in the name of so-called power, just to end up powerless. People who just to be compassionate experience deep fulfilment, this is what it means to be insatiable.” This is something of a contrast to the angrier emotions that inspired the first two albums.
On opening track ‘Hegemonic’, ghostly choral voices float over a seismic hum like tanks shaking the earth, the contrast is terrifying. Those familiar with the Divide and Dissolve sound will enjoy the serene saxophone tones that usher in ‘Monolithic’. Living up to the name, the crushing riffs and crashing drums pound heavily into your brain. Slow and funereal, this superheavy doom metal is colossal sounding. Waves of scorching guitar rage over the slow slamming drums to stunning effect in ‘Withholding’. The drums quicken in pace as the track dynamic shifts before ending with a chilling hum.
The dreamy ‘Loneliness’ is no less absorbing or intense for the lack of guitars and drums, as horn combines with saxophone to yield a haunting sea of atmospherics. ‘Dichotomy’ blasts with cycles of heavy distortion, grinding out a deathly dirge. The high pitch saxophone wails that float in the air at the start of ‘Provenance’ bring a feeling of space and freedom. Halfway through there’s an eruption of bilious riffs and destructive drums to drag you back into a hellish place. Takaiya is a master of creating powerful music that emotes so much depth despite being so simplistic and monotone.
Squalls of feedback roar like wounded dinosaurs in the pain inducing ‘Disintegrate’. Again, there’s a level of playing that not everyone can do as Takaiya controls every grinding wail. After the blood curdling ‘Disintegrate’ it’s a joyous moment to arrive at the heavenly ‘Grief’ which features Takaiya’s first foray into providing vocals to her music. It’s a serene and beautiful piece and the polar opposite of the louder moments on the album. ‘Holding Pattern’ rumbles with seismic droning guitars that mainline their way into your cranium, all-consuming and absorbing. The drums punch with serious intent, crisper than the other tracks, taking the lead as the drone relentlessly remains. Melodic saxophone tones dance with a playful joy to introduce the final track ‘Death Cult’. There’s a tremendous sense of fear with these tracks, as you tentatively await the waves of doom riffs and crashing drums. You sense it with palpable dread. You can find out yourself what happens next, I won’t spoil it for you.
As time moves on and the world becomes an even nastier place to inhabit, we find Divide and Dissolve make progress with this unique style of emotive music. Despite not having any words, this music packs a sizeable amount of feeling and unstoppable power throughout. The lighter moments are airier, and the heavier moments yield darker tones. Undefeated and undeterred, Takiaya aims to change people for the good. You sense a wilful desire to exhale positivity with every saxophone tone. Insatiable is another defiant release from an exciting and talented artist.
