The latest from Finland's Swallow the Sun, "Hope" (on Candlelight Records) sees the band continuing to supplant themselves as one of the absolute finest in their niche with eight tracks in nearly an hour's time. Many would tag the band's style with some form or another of "doom", which isn't inaccurate per se, but it certainly doesn't do justice to the variety and sheer force of their material. Slow, plodding tempos with surging power chords and emphatic lead melodies do make up the core foundation of the their work, but there are always a number of more involved chord phrasings and subtly dissonant runs that color up the tracks nicely, and the superbly powerful vocal growls actually manage to achieve an intense level of feeling and emotion (all too often absent within this particular style of vocals)—further balanced out by smooth, fluid singing on occasion. I wouldn't exactly call the songs "catchy", but for a band that deals so heavily with dark, somber aesthetics the compositions are surprisingly lively and memorable—certainly far more involved and in some abstract manner "energetic" than the bulk of their contemporaries (and, shit, many of their influences as well). Seeing as the tracks routinely top seven minutes it's certainly an enduring listen, but lulls in the impact are few and far between ("Too Cold For Tears", coincidentally the longest track on the disc, represents the only slight lag for me), and the fact that there are so many beautiful moments throughout more than makes up for such. The recording is fucking pristine, too. The guitars are crushingly dense without lacking detail, the percussion is fluid and crisp while remaining naturally warm and spacious, the bass pulses away in the distance to round out the core heaviness, the keyboards are superbly clean and clear and actually add to the atmosphere of the material rather than distracting the listener, and the vocals are perfectly mixed so as to blend in with the instrumentation rather than fighting for attention at the forefront. Love that cover art, too. Swallow the Sun is just an exceptional band. If you're a fan of this particular realm of metal, you simply can't go wrong with these guys. Very much recommended.
Swallow the Sun "These Hours of Despair"
Pick one up if you like what you hear, and absolutely look into the band's back catalog as well if you're new to the fold:
Comments
holy crap. iam glad you turned me on to this band. the keyboard stuff along with pounding “everything” is spectacular…..
6.1.2007 | By L.ron
They’re very popular in their homeland, all local metal and rockbands are very popular in Suomi. If you ever get the chance go to Tuska festival in Helsinki. Also check out Fall of the leafe and Moonsorrow and if you want some Finish weirdness go for Circle or Viikate. Anyway Hope will soon be released on vinyl through garden of exile I’m thinking of picking one of these babies up.
6.2.2007 | By stevhan_ti
This is great stuff. You’re right, “doom” is inadequate to describe this band. And in case you missed Katatonia the last time, they’re playing at Jaxx on Sept. 4 along with Swallow the Sun, Insomnium, and Scar Symmetry. What a bill!
6.2.2007 | By Invisible Oranges
I’ve always felt StS used far too much keyboards (and/or far too loud in the mix) and the My Dying Bride riffing style (chug chug chugga..) they generally adhere to doesn’t do it for me either. I was pleased to hear the keyboards had been reigned back quite a bit on this album, but their music is still based on a riffing technique that I, for whatever reason, find lackluster and ineffective emotionally. The track “The Justice of Suffering” (featuring guest vocals by Jonas Renkse of Katatonia) is without a doubt the highlight by far—and infact the particular PART he sings on is sheer brilliance compared to what surrounds it. Of course I’m probably scrutinizing StS more than the average Joe, since I hold this general genre/scene close to my heart. I /want/ to love it, but it usually doesn’t click. Only a couple parts/songs do. Oh well.
6.12.2007 | By Jesse