All customer reviews by Thomas A.
Posted on: November 13, 2016
DT's Best Album in Over a Decade
Atoma represents the culminaiton of the very best apsects of DT's middle era - Projector to Character - and the heavy, keyboard-driven sound of their post-Fiction era. The previous 3 albums were a bit too keyboard driven for my tastes, with the guitars becoming very simplified and chuggy. It is such a relief to hear the guitars front and center again, with scorching riffs and soaring melodies elevating the songs to greatness. Encircled is brimming with riffs and blistering drumming, the fastest the band has recorded since The Mind's I. Force of Hand is a righteous, stomping track with sizzling guitarwork, and is one of the very best songs on the album. Neutrality oozes dark atmosphere thanks to Brandstrom's keys, and again the riffing is intense. But the album is not all riffs - the title track represents the modern era sound well, with the keys being the driving force, and the guitars being more of a background support. This song really evokes Haven with it's lead melody, and Stanne's clean vocals are impeccably combined with his best-in-the-business growls.
As always, Stanne shows he is the most intelligible vocalist in metal, with his hearty growl as powerful as ever, and his cleans being emotive and rich. His lyrics are also cerebral and philosophical as always, dealing with some very topical issues facing the world today.
All in all, Atoma is a fine return to form for the band, and it feels like they have finally solidified their vision for a post-Character sound. This is their most energetic and inspired album in over a decade and is definitely in my top list for 2016. Highly recommended!
Posted on: September 1, 2016
Monolithic Black Metal Mastery
Even among metal aficionados, Dawn remains an obscure band. Overshadowed by the huge mainstays of Black Metal (Mayhem, Burzum, Darkthrone, Dissection, Marduk, Bathory), Dawn's "Slaughtersun" rivals anything put out by those bands. The album has an immense, monolithic atmosphere: opener "The Knell and the World" paints a huge apocalyptic vista with it's mournful melodies and thundering drums. This song represents the entire album well, stretching beyond the 9 minute mark. The long songs create a slight doom influence, with long sections of driving repetition.
Production wise, this is not your "recorded in a frostbitten walnut in the dark forest" kvlt album. Everything is richly textured and clear, thanks to Peter Tagtgren / Abyss, with a particular highlight being Henke Forss' vocals - his shrieking ferocity and burning sorrow rings out clearly in the maelstorm, with no post-production trickery.
If you're a fan of black metal of the melodic variety, you owe it to yourself to listen to Slaughtersun.
Posted on: May 18, 2016
Kampfar - Djevelmakt
Coming off of their previous album, Mare, Kampfar continue the polishing of their furious black metal sound on Djevelmakt. The "t00 trve" crowd have always cried foul when bands dare to polish their production sound, denouncing it as selling out. While there is a certain charm to old school black metal that sounds like it was recorded using a Fisher Price microphone inside a portaloo, modern black metal should be permitted to evolve and move past that 20 year old aesthetic which has been done to death.
Even with the clearer production, Kampfar retain their blistering fury, with the vocals slicing across the dense riffing and pounding drums. Take the moment on the very first track, Myldur, when the piano fades away and the guitar and drums kick in - this is so colossal, so huge as to seem apocalyptic. The songs are also progressive by black metal standards, channelling Emperor, Enslaved and even Windir.
I count this as Kampfar's finest album, and an essential listen for fans of black metal.
Posted on: May 4, 2016
Spiritual Beggars - Mantra III
This album is often overshadowed by the one that followed it - Ad Astra. But while Mantra III is less polished than Ad Astra, it makes up for it with sheer energy and swagger. The songs here are heavier and more melodic, with the production being raw and blistering. The stomping main riff in "Homage to the Betrayed" is glorious in its sheer ballsiness, just try to listen to it without banging your head. My favorite track here is "Euphoria", which showcases the essential ingredient that is Per Wiberg. This was the his first album with the Beggars, and his addition propels the band into the stratosphere. On Euphoria, his mellotron compliments the chorus and adds a whole other layer of, dare I say, emotion to the mix.
Don't overlook this one - it is equal to Ad Astra!
Posted on: April 28, 2016
Spiritual Beggars - Ad Astra
The one word that describes this album is "energetic." The songs explode with 70s style leads soaring over a crunchy metal rhythm thanks to Michael Amott of Arch Enemy fame. The band has such a balls-to-the-wall attitude that you can't help but get swept up in the awesomeness of this album. Spice's vocal delivery has gritty swagger and his performance is what ties the entire sound together, and this album marks his final outting with the band. Later albums never quite reach the dizzying heights of Ad Astra, and this release is the perfect summation of Spiritual Beggars' magnum opus.
Posted on: November 19, 2014
Pulverising Old School Death Metal
It's been six long years since Bloodbath unleashed The Fathomless Mastery upon the world, and in that time, Mikael Akerfeldt renounced his allegiance to extreme metal - quitting Bloodbath and sending Opeth irrevocably down the prog rabbit-hole. This left Bloodbath in an ucnertain spot - who the hell could follow in the lofty footsteps of Mikael Akerfledt and Peter Tagtgren?
After years of silence and teased mysteries, we finally have a new album, Grand Morbid Funeral, with Old Nick from Paradise Lost on vocals. At first listen, his style comes across as very odd and croaky, but this B-movie-monster style fits the crushingly oppressive sound perfectly. His voice sounds musty and acrid, like the stench of rancid decay rushing forth from a freshly opened coffin. His delivery is so evil and unique that I might be forced to call him the best Bloodbath vocalist so far. The guitar tone is equally hellish and roiling, making the entire listening experience an invigorating hit of death metal done properly.
Bloodbath are at the top of their game, slaughtering the feeble and defending their crown as death metal's reigning supergroup!