Curse these metal hands Every day, I wake up in this strange world with a heavy heart. My once nimble fingers have become tools of steel - cold and unforgiving. Curse these metal hands that have stolen the essence of my humanity. Gone are the days of delicate caresses, gentle embraces, and the ability to feel the warmth of a loved one's touch. Now all I feel is the weight of these metallic appendages, a constant reminder of what I have lost. I used to be an artist, creating beautiful masterpieces with my hands.
With three guitars all being held by equally distinctive vocalists, the band have a wealth of textures and flavours at their disposal, giving the album variety on top of the remarkable sense of cohesion. It’s very easy to forget that Curse These Metal Hands is a side project squeezed into the already hectic schedules of two disparate and busy bands. However, this in turn may be a major contributory factor to the immediate and playful ambience of the music. This is not music that has been written to satisfy a hungry, expectant fanbase, or to meet the demands of a recording contract – but more the product of five like-minded individuals setting themselves up in a rehearsal room, locking the door, shouting “GO!” and seeing what comes out. In an age where music is increasingly written by individuals hunched over laptops on their own, the difference is both startling and refreshing. Despite this apparently fluid, jam-based approach, they have still worked in some neat flourishes. In particular, during a loud-to-quiet transition in “The Pall” the guitar motif is gradually transferred from electric to acoustic. After the truly epic outro riff of “Sunday”, there’s even the briefest little reprise of the main riff from “High Spirits” to neatly close the loop on the album.
Both Conjurer and Pijn in their separate respects paddle the thin creek of genre definitions, giving my two inner demons performative Harvard-style debate headaches. Neither conforms to any one particular genre that easily, but both toy around with very specific production and stylistic choices that just beg to be labelled.
I used to be an artist, creating beautiful masterpieces with my hands. Each stroke of the brush, each sculpting motion was an expression of my soul. But now, I can no longer create.
Pijn & Conjurer – “Curse These Metal Hands”
Peanut butter and jelly. Bert and Ernie. Pijn and Conjurer? Yes . Love these two bands, and I was very curious to see what the Holy Roar labelmates could do. They really come together on Curse These Metal Hands, a project I terribly mistook as a split at first. This is not a split! It’s a collaborative effort with members of each band writing, producing, and performing across all four songs of this album.
What I wanted to be a stylistic tug-of-war between the close-but-not-that-close post-metal bands turned into something else entirely. Go figure, right? Artists coming together to create something different. Conjurer trend heavier with a doomed, almost blackened aesthetic, while Pijn are more closely aligned with the atmospheric side of the post-metal sound. Meld the two together and throw them in a direction that neither band have explicitly tread before and you get zealous comparisons to bands like Baroness that aren’t totally unfounded, but too simplistic all the same.
The album isn’t thematically linked in any way I can properly decipher, but I can’t help but apply a theme with the sonics of this album. From the opening, teasing licks of “High Spirits”, to the absolutely triumphant, final flourish of notes that close out “Sunday”, it’s as if Curse These Metal Hands is a blazing sun that creeps into existence at the start, blazes hot and heavily in the middle, then bids a vivid farewell to cap things off.
True to life, this album, like the sun, showcases some of its prettiest moments in the beginning with “High Spirits”, when the rays are reaching out to usher in a new, bright beginning. Conjurer and Pijn start slow and playfully with light guitars that gradually work in drums, vocals and so forth. You’re heard it all before… but have you heard it done this well? Listen to it – hear that burly-ass beat drop when all instruments slam into the mix about a third of the way in. Take in the groovy-as-hell instrumental bridge after the first verse. Bask in the calm interlude, which provides some welcome cloud cover from the scorching riffs and blazing vocals. Couple this with the lyric video’s cute inclusion of closed captions-esque tags like ‘’ or ‘’ during the parts where those are actually employed and you can just feel the character radiating out from this music.
This is all part of the charm of Curse These Metal Hands – the two bands went out of their way to not only distance themselves from their own established sounds, but also to not sound like what you would assume they should sound like together. This album could have been produced under a completely different name and no one would bat an eye, but attributing this to each of their names – together – shows the breadth of expression, and the variety of sound which both bands are willing to explore. It hints to a future where both bands can go, and even to places they haven’t even been yet, individually or collectively.
Both Conjurer and Pijn in their separate respects paddle the thin creek of genre definitions, giving my two inner demons performative Harvard-style debate headaches. Neither conforms to any one particular genre that easily, but both toy around with very specific production and stylistic choices that just beg to be labelled. Most distinctly, Conjurer broke out onto the scene with ferocious performances, deliberate pace and intense fusion of all sorts of metal’s darkest and slowest subtypes. Combine that with co-singer Dan Nightingale’s ability to growl louder than the backing instruments without a microphone and you got yourself a reputation to put others to shame. Their 2018 output ‘Mire’ saw an enormous cross-platform engagement from people, quite unexpectedly for an independent metal band’s debut. Pijn started out the same year with ‘Loss’, a more instrumentally laced, contemplative record that veered into metal only ever so slightly, staying firmly engaged in every major “post-“ prefix genre (hello, Demon N.2).
The grace and finesse that once defined my work have been replaced by a mechanical precision that lacks passion and creativity. Curse these metal hands that have silenced my artistic voice. Simple tasks that were once second nature have now become a struggle. The soft, delicate petals of a flower feel foreign and distant as I crush them under my unfeeling grip. The keys of a piano no longer sing beneath my touch, but instead produce cold, lifeless notes that lack emotion. Curse these metal hands that have severed my connection to the world around me. The pain runs deeper than physical discomfort. It is a constant reminder of the person I used to be, and the person I can never be again. I long for the sensation of warmth, the gentle pressure of a handshake, and the tender embrace of a loved one. Curse these metal hands that have stolen my ability to feel love and connection. But amidst the darkness, a glimmer of hope remains. Though my hands may be made of metal, my spirit is still human. I may have lost my artistry, my touch, and my connection, but I have not lost myself. Though this curse may define my physicality, it does not define who I am as a person. So, I will curse these metal hands, curse them for what they have taken from me. But I will also find a way to embrace them, to accept them as a part of my journey. I will strive to find new ways of expressing myself, new ways of connecting, and new ways of creating beauty in this world. Curse these metal hands, but do not curse the spirit that resides within..
Reviews for "Breaking the Curse: Innovations in Metal Hand Technology"
1. John - 2 stars - I was really excited to read "Curse these metal hands" based on the premise, but unfortunately, it fell flat for me. The writing felt disjointed and the characters lacked depth. The plot dragged on and there were too many unnecessary subplots that didn't add anything to the story. Overall, I was left disappointed and unfulfilled by this book.
2. Sarah - 1 star - I couldn't make it past the first few chapters of "Curse these metal hands". The writing was choppy and confusing, making it difficult to follow along with the story. The characters were also unrelatable and didn't evoke any emotions in me. I found myself disinterested and bored, and ultimately gave up on this book.
3. Emily - 2 stars - "Curse these metal hands" had an interesting concept, but it lacked execution. The pacing felt off, with too much time spent on insignificant details and not enough focus on the main storyline. The dialogue also felt forced and unnatural, making it hard to connect with the characters. Overall, I struggled to stay engaged with this book and wouldn't recommend it.
4. David - 1 star - I'm sorry to say that "Curse these metal hands" was a major disappointment for me. The writing was overly descriptive to the point of being tedious, and the plot lacked originality. The characters felt one-dimensional and their actions often didn't make sense. I found myself forcing through the pages, hoping it would get better, but sadly it didn't. I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone looking for a captivating read.
5. Jennifer - 2 stars - I had high hopes for "Curse these metal hands" and was initially intrigued by the premise. However, the execution fell short for me. The writing was overly simplistic and lacked depth, making it difficult to become invested in the story or the characters. The plot felt predictable and the pacing was inconsistent. Overall, I found this book to be underwhelming and forgettable.