The return of Edge of Sanity is not so much a return of a fabulous death metal band, as Dan Swanö toying in a studio with some friends. This leads to an album which really shouldnt have been released under the Edge of Sanity name, as the music lies much closer to Dan Swanös Moontower-project, complete with symphonic prog elements.
The album has many excellent moments, for Dan Swanö remains a capable song-writer, however, the presence of particularly two former Edge of Sanity-members is sorely missed: Andreas Axelsson, the man who penned many of the best riffs and melodies on classics like Unorthodox and Purgatory Afterglow, and Benny Larsson, the drummer whose technique and flair gave the bands compositions a powerful drive clearly lacking on Crimson II.
At times, the album manages to sound like good ol Edge Of Sanity, mainly due to the return of certain riffs and parts from the original Crimson. A few of the new parts also have this melodic, rough feel of the old band, but the constantly appearing Moontower-synths are distracting.
The production is an improvement over earlier Edge albums, although it takes some spins in the player before it becomes comfortable, especially Dans death growls which are mixed pretty low compared to earlier efforts. Crimson II doesnt feel as whole as the first Crimson, the parts feel more disjointed and there are more (silent) pauses than what we had on the first part, which creates a less interesting sound.
All in all a good album which I hopes will grow on me more than it has up to this point. As an old Edge of Sanity-fan I might be a bit too nitpicky, time will tell.
Why is that when bands return to their old logos, they have to take away stuff from the logo? 4 out of 6 points.
The album has many excellent moments, for Dan Swanö remains a capable song-writer, however, the presence of particularly two former Edge of Sanity-members is sorely missed: Andreas Axelsson, the man who penned many of the best riffs and melodies on classics like Unorthodox and Purgatory Afterglow, and Benny Larsson, the drummer whose technique and flair gave the bands compositions a powerful drive clearly lacking on Crimson II.
At times, the album manages to sound like good ol Edge Of Sanity, mainly due to the return of certain riffs and parts from the original Crimson. A few of the new parts also have this melodic, rough feel of the old band, but the constantly appearing Moontower-synths are distracting.
The production is an improvement over earlier Edge albums, although it takes some spins in the player before it becomes comfortable, especially Dans death growls which are mixed pretty low compared to earlier efforts. Crimson II doesnt feel as whole as the first Crimson, the parts feel more disjointed and there are more (silent) pauses than what we had on the first part, which creates a less interesting sound.
All in all a good album which I hopes will grow on me more than it has up to this point. As an old Edge of Sanity-fan I might be a bit too nitpicky, time will tell.
Why is that when bands return to their old logos, they have to take away stuff from the logo? 4 out of 6 points.
