[wrathzombie]

 
Proggy Death: Ana Kefr.. \m/
 
 

 

[Trogdor]

Satan just told me to tell you your gothic metal sucks hairy donkey spherical attachments and you should join the fun side before it's too late. 

"The last thing known about Hemnur is Frediablos claim of the project being a joke. He wanted to show how pathetic the contemporary black metal scene is by playing the most dilettante music and creating a pseudo-satanic image."

Black'n'Roll?

I swear the guy is saying "Satan is hairy..." (which may in fact be true, don't know)

 

[Trogdor]

Proggy Death: Ana Kefr.. \m/

Wow this track is all over the place. I can't even begin to define a genre.

 

[Trogdor]

Ok, SOOoooo I finally listened to the new Swallow the Sun all the way through. It reminds me of 2007's Hope a lot, I think the band wanted to explore that direction more. I definitely was not expecting so much of it to be done with clean vocals, and if Mikko had not improved his singing to the level that he did, it would've been a pretty bad album. Instead it's very good, verging on excellent. I don't really "get" the title track, maybe that will take more listens. From thereon though it's very solid. I enjoyed the progressive elements and the excellent production really benefits the dense, gloomy atmosphere (pay attention Insomnium). The only other issue I had was with the spoken word elements, particularly on Labyrinth of London. Those went on for WAY too long, it started to feel like talking over the album instead of being a part of it.

Overall I'd rate it about the same level as Hope. Better than New Moon, not as good as the first two albums. 8/10.

Swallow The Sun is a solid funeral death metal band but a mediocre funeral doom band. At times, the slow pacing and clean vocals seem more like random delineation points between deathy breakdowns than integral parts that build up suspense. However, I don't want to take away the fact that the slow parts are quite melodic and stunning in themselves even if they don't feel natural. When they do bring it in and get down to business, Swallow The Sun execute sublimely: Highlights include "Hate, Lead The Way," "Silent Towers," and "Labyrinth of London," where clean vocals, crushing riffage, and somber melody fuse into instant classics.

But ultimately, the album as a whole feels like beautiful puzzle pieces that don't quite fit together. And despite the fantastic production of this album, the more sinister atmosphere of previous works such as Hope is just lost.

For existing Swallow fans, this album has enough classic moments to satisfy their appetite but otherwise, I suggest first listening to their back catalog before diving into Emerald.

7.5/10

Notes:

- See the movie Pan's Labyrinth in order to understand the title track!
- I reviewed this using my TF10's connected directly to my MBP. My JH3A system is in the shop for repair. I will give the album another turn this year to see if my rating changes.

 

[Trogdor]

@Negakinu (and really everybody with an open mind and a penchant for black metal),

I discovered a real gem of 2011 that had almost no coverage (I suspect because the project is from Down Under and Woods of Desolation got all the coverage last year).

Check this out:

 

[japc]

Not wanting to be a genre facist but they're too happy and fast to be anything Funeral Doom. (compare to anything by Thergothon or Evoken), they're more like Gothic or something.

 

[wrathzombie]

Quote:

Wow this track is all over the place. I can't even begin to define a genre.

Listen to the full album, it is multi-genre metal.

 

[DaveBSC]

Quote:

Not wanting to be a genre facist but they're too happy and fast to be anything Funeral Doom. (compare to anything by Thergothon or Evoken), they're more like Gothic or something.

Yeah I didn't really hear funeral elements either. Sort of like how later In Flames albums evolved (or I should probably say devolved) from "Ordinary Story", I think Emerald Forest is sort of the evolution of earlier melodic/gothic STS. What will be interesting is where the band goes from here. Is this album their "Projector", or is this the new sound of the band? I would've preferred a more balanced mix of heavy and light similar to the new Ghost Brigade, but I still really enjoyed the album. I do wish I could take those spoken elements out though. The Daylight Dies release is due around June, it will be interesting to see what direction they've chosen to go.

 

[Trogdor]

Yeah I didn't really hear funeral elements either. Sort of like how later In Flames albums evolved (or I should probably say devolved) from "Ordinary Story", I think Emerald Forest is sort of the evolution of earlier melodic/gothic STS. What will be interesting is where the band goes from here. Is this album their "Projector", or is this the new sound of the band? I would've preferred a more balanced mix of heavy and light similar to the new Ghost Brigade, but I still really enjoyed the album. I do wish I could take those spoken elements out though. The Daylight Dies release is due around June, it will be interesting to see what direction they've chosen to go.

The pacing is doom with funeral elements for sure. The pacing was a bit slower than usual which sets off my doom alarm!

I agree with you Dave, it will be interesting what they decide to do. I stand by what I said, I hear a lot of doom/borderline funeral doom elements on this record and frankly, they aren't that great. When they bring it in and get back to their roots, things get interesting.

I like but not love this album.

Of course if they tour with Insomnium this year, I'm there!

 

[CrystalT]

I can't believe you guys are seriously discussing Lamb of God. I am disappoint.

 

[ManchildProdigy]

Quote:

I can't believe you guys are seriously discussing Lamb of God. I am disappoint.

 
Why is that?
 
 

 

[wrathzombie]

 
 


Quote:

I can't believe you guys are seriously discussing Lamb of God. I am disappoint.

Whatttttt? Who Cares?? HAHA.. This song is dedicated to XanderTJ and JackeShan
 

 

 

[JackeShan]

I agree. 

 
Quote:

I can't believe you guys are seriously discussing Lamb of God. I am disappoint.

 

 

[wrathzombie]

Quote:

I agree. 

 


 

Sorry about the disappointment, getting back to the discussion... we were talking about the latest sludgedroneprogavantgardepowerblackambientdoommelodeathgroovegrind band... blah blah blah..... Absolutely marvelous..

 

[Trogdor]

Whatttttt? Who Cares?? HAHA

Post Metallica again and you will be banned.