Gavin Mistry: Vocals
Jakob Lærke Harris: Guitar / Vocals
Patrick Petersen: Bass
Frederik Kjelstrup Hansen: Drums
On the debut LP from this shrewdly named Danish duo, the usually clear-cut boundary between apocalyptic, sludgy blackened death metal and dark urban trap-rap is thrillingly pulverised. Lines of musical convention are further blurred by disarmingly emotive and intimate vocal lines, and a vibrant sound picture heaving with glacial synths and hypnotic sonic details. At first it might daunt and confuse those who like their boundaries clear-cut, but at the heart of Gradience's brash and radical new sound is an authentic and heartwarming new friendship. In 2022, guitarist Jakob Harris and vocalist Gavin Mistry struck up an immediate creative rapport at a Copenhagen show for local deathcore heroes Cabal. Although from very different backgrounds - Jakob a visual artist and musician playing in "a popcore band", Gavin a main player "in different hip-hop constellations" - they quickly found common ground in an area both were keen to explore.
"We found out we had many of the same musical influences in metal, even though neither of us had ever played in a metal band," says Jakob. "We later found out we both were at a crossroads with the bands/projects we had going on, and we both felt an urge to create something new together." As Gavin remembers, this inciting revelation took place on the most important day of his life, one way and another: "I invited Jakob to my wedding, where we talked over the idea of joining forces in a semi-drunken haze. I was searching for something where I could blend my honed skills in rap and rock, the right way."
Gavin had been signed to Sony in Denmark with his "grunge/rock/trap duo" KXDS - a project stymied by the Covid disaster. Before that, he'd been involved with an underground hip-hop label/collective: "I had gained a little performance experience and was known as the authentic trap-rapper with emotional and melodic bits," says Gavin. His efforts attracted the ear of Jakob, who knew he'd found a kindred soul, with a voice that he was keen to work with. "It was an immediate musical and creative match," enthuses Jakob. "I admired Gavin's vivid lyrics and his ease, switching between delicate melody lines and hard flows; it just opened so many doors to explore in the songwriting process."
Both men spent years working in various artistic collaborations, but Gradience audibly generate real 'planets aligning' energy. The tension and turbulence of Jakob's extreme metal growl finds counterintuitive new context alongside Gavin's fierce rhythms and rhymes, further enlivened by the spontaneous crackle to the performances - not least Patrick and Frederik's hammering rhythm section. Also evident is an exploratory zeal and playful curiosity that dovetailed organically for both parties: "When we began writing together, we suddenly found songwriting to be straightforward," says Jakob. "We knew from the get-go we wanted to write metal and do something completely new that we hadn't heard before - and at the same time write music we felt we needed to hear. That was our only goal and focus: writing music for ourselves."
Gavin and Jakob had been writing and recording for two years before starting work on Anomaly as a total blank slate. The only thing planned in advance was the shape of the record: "We had an idea of how many songs we wanted on the album and how the overall flow should be, born from how our favorite albums have been made," says Jakob. "More of a journey of 30-40 minutes of music that shows the span of what an artist can do, instead of just a 10-song compilation. We've set ourselves up to be able to write both slow-medium ballads and fast-paced heavy songs, and we pride ourselves on having a sound that still feels coherent."
A crucial factor in the success of that endeavour is Chris Kreutzfeldt's intense, resounding production - just one aspect of the recording that both men were in perfect harmony about. "Because we grew up with similar interests in bands and music, everything about our creation process has felt as natural as can be," comments Gavin, "with Jakob being able to create sounds and pieces I think I would make myself, if I were a producer. When we write and create together, it feels like working with another part of yourself, in the best way possible."
Although musically Gradience is a beautifully balanced partnership, Gavin handles all lyrics, and song titles like Vermin, Agony, Blame Me and Deathwish attest to the bleak darkness seething beneath the choice rhymes and voluble flow. "Lyrically, I tend to write from my own experiences and emotions," affirms Gavin. "As an immigrant in Denmark, I have lived and received my fair share of pushback and challenges. From a young age, I have practiced writing about my thoughts and feelings - either as poetry or diary entries. It's been a way for me to cope with the feeling of being alone and misunderstood - pretty much all my teen years. It has molded, formed, and taught me things, but it has also shone a light on my existence in ways I wasn't always ready to accept. Bitter truth kind of feels. The album's lyrical themes can be experienced as me reflecting on past, present and future truths and/or lies that have been important for me to deal with."
If you're looking for a handy stylistic descriptor to make sense of Gradience's versatile, mashed-up innovations, you'll have to invent your own; the old-fashioned 'rap metal' tag scarcely does it justice. "I don't really feel we can be put into the box of 'rap metal'," muses Gavin, "but for people to more easily identify our sound, I tend to somewhat compare us to what could be conceived as 'rap metal'. Though, our genre is really just a mixture of all the stuff we like, all neatly packaged with some bars, screams, and double bass drums."
"It just feels completely natural for us to mix everything," Jakob agrees. "We're really up for whatever label people want to put on us. We've actually found it difficult for ourselves to narrow it down - but we like to think of ourselves as just being a metal band. We've used the description 'blackened rap metal' just to catch people's attention. But to me, rap is just a tool we use to convey an emotion or feel, just like we use screams and melody. We've found different styles of rap and singing that suit Gavin really well, and when we're writing vocals for a song, we're only thinking about what would be the best fit with the energy and vibe. For us, there needs to be an emotional connection in order for heavy music to resonate with the listener on a deeper level."
