OpCritical's "Guillotine" Review

Strings come in sharp and fast, and the overall vibe shifts into a different gear. “Guillotine” by OpCritical takes an approach like some of the most daring bops, moving so directly into the music that the build-up is almost nonexistent and there's no warning. There's tension from the get-go, and the song begins to move before we can even get comfortable. It immediately grabs you and makes you want to know what's next.

The song begins unexpectedly softly with a violin and acoustic guitar, which provide a sense of almost a lack of energy. But that goes on for a short time. The drums begin to grow bulkier, the synths introduce a bit more edge, and before long, the entire thing sounds more like a march than a song.

The music is very well suited to the subject of the song. This is the third song in a trilogy about inequality, taking the French Revolution as a point of reference, when ordinary people finally rose up against a king and a queen who lived luxuriously while everyone else was starving. It doesn't matter if you know the history or not, but if you do, it will make the anger hit you harder.

The vocals convey that anger nicely. It's not quiet and understated at all. During the more intense sections, when the group vocals are heard, it doesn't sound like a single person singing but like a crowd. That's what it is all about. This isn't a personal story. It is something that people are supposed to shout together.

The most surprising for me was the orchestral parts. The strings and orchestral parts add some extra interest to the rock sound, but they also lend weight to the music, and the song has a sense of momentum. It makes the entire thing feel larger without taking away from the rock sound.

It's not so much the guillotine imagery that sticks with me. It's the greater concern behind that, namely the degree of inequality that people will tolerate until something finally snaps. It's a question that is as old as the French Revolution itself, and this song is a way of posing the question aloud.

Some songs attempt to make you feel a quiet. This one requires a standing position. It doesn't ask for permission to be angry, it doesn't even try to hide its anger. This is what makes it stick.