ENID - Gradwanderer (2004)
code666
http://www.enid.ht.st/
1. Chimera
2. An Ode To The Forlorn
3. Silent Stage
4. Gradwanderer
5. Die Seelensteine
6. When The Last Glow Flies
7. Exemption
8. The Burning Of The Sea
9. Herbststurm (bonus)
A trend I've noticed in metal lately is to maintain certain underground tendencies while sounding as non-metal as possible. Oftentimes this comes off forced and different just for different's sake. ENID is certainly the case of a pseudo metal band, in fact even the few metal tracks are not as such the whole way through. But unlike many of their peers, ENID has produced something rather striking with Gradwanderer.
Starting off not entirely unlike melodic metal in the vein of SOLEFALD, Gradwanderer doesn't waste much time getting quiet. Harmonized guitars and soaring clean vocals open the affair, but by the second track the metal elements tag back and forth with simplistic tabla, a solemn flute, and what could be a koto. This isn't typical toss-in-an-acoustic-interlude, because even though the music pulls at opposite ends several times throughout An Ode to the Forlorn, it flows. Next up is Silent Stage, a piano and vocal duet that could easily be found on a Jim Brickman album. It could be the complete dichotomy, or perhaps the fact that the vocals and keys are quite beautiful, but this works extremely well and eventually becomes expected rather than surprising like at first. Back and forth Gradwanderer journeys between metal and near adult contemporary, maintaining complete balance the entire time.
This album is still a bit of an enigma, but being one of the few promos I've received lately that I actually look forward to giving a spin, it must be good. I speculate to even classify it as metal, but there are certainly the elements present at times. Some may wonder what a group like ENID is doing alongside label mates NEGURA BUNGET and UNMOORED, but then again, MANES calls code666 home as well. Kudos for an underground metal label to go out on a limb, as Gradwanderer is a real peach.
8/10
code666
http://www.enid.ht.st/
1. Chimera
2. An Ode To The Forlorn
3. Silent Stage
4. Gradwanderer
5. Die Seelensteine
6. When The Last Glow Flies
7. Exemption
8. The Burning Of The Sea
9. Herbststurm (bonus)
A trend I've noticed in metal lately is to maintain certain underground tendencies while sounding as non-metal as possible. Oftentimes this comes off forced and different just for different's sake. ENID is certainly the case of a pseudo metal band, in fact even the few metal tracks are not as such the whole way through. But unlike many of their peers, ENID has produced something rather striking with Gradwanderer.
Starting off not entirely unlike melodic metal in the vein of SOLEFALD, Gradwanderer doesn't waste much time getting quiet. Harmonized guitars and soaring clean vocals open the affair, but by the second track the metal elements tag back and forth with simplistic tabla, a solemn flute, and what could be a koto. This isn't typical toss-in-an-acoustic-interlude, because even though the music pulls at opposite ends several times throughout An Ode to the Forlorn, it flows. Next up is Silent Stage, a piano and vocal duet that could easily be found on a Jim Brickman album. It could be the complete dichotomy, or perhaps the fact that the vocals and keys are quite beautiful, but this works extremely well and eventually becomes expected rather than surprising like at first. Back and forth Gradwanderer journeys between metal and near adult contemporary, maintaining complete balance the entire time.
This album is still a bit of an enigma, but being one of the few promos I've received lately that I actually look forward to giving a spin, it must be good. I speculate to even classify it as metal, but there are certainly the elements present at times. Some may wonder what a group like ENID is doing alongside label mates NEGURA BUNGET and UNMOORED, but then again, MANES calls code666 home as well. Kudos for an underground metal label to go out on a limb, as Gradwanderer is a real peach.
8/10
