Borknagar Epic
Century Media Records August 10th, 2004
By Jason Jordan
What I feared most has come to pass: Borknagar sound like a Vintersorg clone. I guess theres a certain amount of inevitability involved; it only makes sense that a group that includes two members of Vintersorg does indeed sound similar to the aforementioned. But, this time around, the guys arent nearly as original especially when compared to their big influence. On the plus side, Vintersorg turns in the vocal performance of his career. His melodies and clean singing are both spot-on, while his growling continues to be a staple of the quartets sound. Ive never heard better from him. Along the same lines, Mickelsons drum-filling abilities have improved considerably since Empiricism. Asgeir utilizes different cymbals to create changing auras and toms are used more sparingly this time. But when they are used, theyre powerful. And, these idiosyncrasies really help boost the songs' overall environment.
Though the first few songs do have their moments, the real meat of the release is the mid-section. The Weight of Wind (track five) is ominous as it dispels its solemn piano interludes with electronic sounds/minimal drumming underneath. A fine instrumental piece. Resonance is grandiose at first, until Vintersorg enters and sets the atmosphere. The brass-esque keyboard sections compliment the work nicely. Check the one minute mark for some excellent drumming and insurmountable yet brief vocal melodies. Relate begins solemnly then calms into a pseudo-existential ballad that only Borknagar are capable of producing. Heavy passages are pasted between the soft parts however.
Its not as if theres anything bad here. Sure, there are some tracks I could live without, but my whole qualm with Epic is that it fails to set the group apart from Vintersorg; this release could've easily followed Visions from the Spiral Generator or The Focusing Blur. I can honestly say that Id be reaching for Borknagars Self-Titled or Empiricism before Epic. Until some efforts to differentiate between projects takes place, Ill be looking to Vintersorgs other endeavors to satisfy my avant-garde, organic metal tastes. Its too bad really because they are on the verge of their swansong. Maybe next time.
7.5/10
Official Borknagar website
Official Century Media Records website
Century Media Records August 10th, 2004
By Jason Jordan
What I feared most has come to pass: Borknagar sound like a Vintersorg clone. I guess theres a certain amount of inevitability involved; it only makes sense that a group that includes two members of Vintersorg does indeed sound similar to the aforementioned. But, this time around, the guys arent nearly as original especially when compared to their big influence. On the plus side, Vintersorg turns in the vocal performance of his career. His melodies and clean singing are both spot-on, while his growling continues to be a staple of the quartets sound. Ive never heard better from him. Along the same lines, Mickelsons drum-filling abilities have improved considerably since Empiricism. Asgeir utilizes different cymbals to create changing auras and toms are used more sparingly this time. But when they are used, theyre powerful. And, these idiosyncrasies really help boost the songs' overall environment.
Though the first few songs do have their moments, the real meat of the release is the mid-section. The Weight of Wind (track five) is ominous as it dispels its solemn piano interludes with electronic sounds/minimal drumming underneath. A fine instrumental piece. Resonance is grandiose at first, until Vintersorg enters and sets the atmosphere. The brass-esque keyboard sections compliment the work nicely. Check the one minute mark for some excellent drumming and insurmountable yet brief vocal melodies. Relate begins solemnly then calms into a pseudo-existential ballad that only Borknagar are capable of producing. Heavy passages are pasted between the soft parts however.
Its not as if theres anything bad here. Sure, there are some tracks I could live without, but my whole qualm with Epic is that it fails to set the group apart from Vintersorg; this release could've easily followed Visions from the Spiral Generator or The Focusing Blur. I can honestly say that Id be reaching for Borknagars Self-Titled or Empiricism before Epic. Until some efforts to differentiate between projects takes place, Ill be looking to Vintersorgs other endeavors to satisfy my avant-garde, organic metal tastes. Its too bad really because they are on the verge of their swansong. Maybe next time.
7.5/10
Official Borknagar website
Official Century Media Records website
