First up is "Ghosts of Loss", the long-awaited follow-up to Swallow the Sun's absolutely amazing debut, where this Finnish act continues to deliver a mesmerizing blend of crushing midpaced power chords and burly growls against loads of atmospheric clean breaks and intensely layered melodies with gorgeous singing vocals. These guys always seems to remind me of Novembers Doom to a degree, though perhaps they're a touch more energetic, but whatever the case we're talking about an incredible band here. They've got a very strong songwriting approach with a good variety of tempos and lots of unexpectedly creative riffing shifts that really carry the weight of the lengthy tracks (which average around eight minutes apiece). I'd probably say that the recording on this outing isn't quite as pristine as that of "The Morning Never Came", which doesn't hurt per se, but I do miss some of that perfectly smooth clarity at times. Though when all's said and done this album sounds damn near perfect itself, so I'm not complaining! This is just extremely high quality material that deserves much more appreciation for what it has to offer. Swallow the Sun is one of the best bands out there for this particular style, if not one of the best bands I've ever heard within this particular area of metal... period.
I've been following Fall of the Leafe for about six years now, and here they are with "Vantage"— already their fifth full-length album!? Admittedly these cats are somewhat of an acquired taste, but in my opinion this Finnish band is one of the most truly original sounding acts out there, and are most certainly worthy of a greater deal of attention. In their earlier days they largely sounded like a traditional melodic death/black metal band in terms of general riffing styles, though the vocal work was already starting to create a niche for the band before they eventually gave up on the aggressive vocals and opted for a more creatively rocked out direction. So these days, aside from a couple of straightforward dual guitar harmonies here and there possessing that Scandinavian flare, the band captures a sound that's all their own, and I'm honestly not even sure how to try and explain it. They're really quite a quirky little group. I've heard several complaints about the vocals over the years, and I guess I can understand how the vocal approach could turn some people away, but I don't know... I've always found the singing to be awesome, and when the band's delivery gels perfectly, some of the vocal lines are monumentally infectious (a couple of the tracks from 2004's "Volvere" are so impeccably catchy that I'm not sure the band can ever top them). Hopefully some of you will like this stuff, 'cause I'm a major fan of these guys and they're really overdue for a larger audience. They seem to jump to a different label for almost every record, so it'd be nice to see Firebox become a stable home for 'em:
Fall of the Leafe "The Fresco"
Fall of the Leafe "Receiver"
Like it? Buy this one too, then:
"Sleep of Reason" marks my first exposure to Australian outfit The Eternal, though it's their second album, and it totally hits the spot with its midpaced rhythms and moody melodies. This one definitely has an "Icon" or "Draconian Times" era Paradise Lost tinge to its style, but it sounds somewhat more fluid and has this swirling sort of quality to all of the vocal harmonies and the general density of the recording. There are loose ties to Katatonia or Rapture or that sort of thing going on as well, but while not wholly original I wouldn't rely on any of these comparisons too heavily, because this is somewhat of a wide-spanning delivery that's almost doomy, not exactly gothic melodic metal that has a rocked out base. This is another long record, though the songs usually stick pretty tactfully around four or five minutes each, and like Fall of the Leafe, when this band is on, they're on. Just check out the broodingly powerful "To Drown". I mean, that chorus... whew, you simply don't find many vocal performances like that in the metal realm. I'm all over that shit. Well fucking done.
Comments
for some reason i have a feeling swallow the sun will never top their amazing debut
2.27.2006 | By Anonymous
I’m very much enjoying all of these songs, particularly The Eternal’s tracks. Fall of the Leafe make great music and the guy’s vocals are enjoyable for the most part, but each time he throws in that gruff sort of “YUH” at the end of each line it reminds me of Creed or some shit. This band would absolutely kill if he stopped trying to get all growly at the very last second.
2.27.2006 | By james