White Medal is the feral Black Metal incarnation of Yorkshire based George Proctor - previously of power electronics aggressor Mutant Ape. Proctor also plays in Gammal Sed - a mysterious duo who released one violently feraln black noiscape cassete titled Blót earlier this year - but there is little information regarding either to give much away. White Medal put out a demo cassette titled Abrigg Beast, on UK/Italian label Legion Blotan and a split 7" with Skullflower, both in March 2010.
Agbrigg Beast was recorded and produced with Andrew Curtis-Brignall, of Cäina, who describes this band as "The best UK Black Metal band currently active". Very much sharing the heritage element of Winterfylleth, the lyrics are sung and intonated, despite the rasp, entirely in a Yorkshire dialect, the lyric sheet to the album includes the full story of Agbrigg, seemingly the tale of a wild wolf maraudingthe titular village, but the music is an entirely different beast; the guitars tear jagged shapes with a punkish fervour, and though only ever partly distorted, have a real force to them. The chord progressions shift from the downtuned atonal up to major keys in On't Borough and The Last Days that add a shockingly fresh melodic bouyancy within a very brief running. There's a very crusty influence at work bringing the equally location sensitive Amebix to mind, though White Medal is still vehemently a black metal band. There's a nice minimalism to the whole deal, the brevity of the songs, the monochrome bastardised St. George's Cross of the artwork; a cover which invokes the album's subject matter yet debases it in tradional metal fashion. One of the highlights of the year, and hopefully not the last we'll hear of this intriguing project.
The tape is available from George Proctor's Turgid Animal label for just £4, or the US based Seedstock Records have now released these five tracks on vinyl, along with two extras, modified artwork at a slightly pricey $25.
Only link to the band is over here at Last.FM
Agbrigg from the album Agbrigg Beast
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