KATAKLYSM EPIC (THE POETRY OF WAR)
Nuclear Blast - 2001
Visit the Nuclear Blast website
Visit the Kataklysm website
By Rodrigo
The new Kataklysm album is upon us and Epic (The Poetry of War) is the the sort of album that one can expect from the Canadian band. Its brutal, its unrelenting, its a headbangers dream and its the sort of album you want to hear to blow some steam off. Yet it is also an album that really offers nothing new. One gets the feeling that what you hear in this album you have heard in other albums, mainly with Cryptopsy and Dying Fetus.
Thats what this album basically boils down to. The drumming by Max Duhamel is simpler but too similar to Flo Mouniers drumming. The singing by Maurizio Iacono is also similar to Mike DiSalvos style but Maurizio does mix it up with a high-pitch voice from time to time. The guitar riffs are straightforward and heavy but I was hoping for more complexity.
Thats not to say that Epic (The Poetry of War) is a bad album but just an album that doesnt move this sort of music forward. Kataklysm is stuck in neutral, not moving forward or backward. This is unfortunate because the better songs from the album like "Il Diavolo in Me", "Wounds", "Era of the Mercyless (Roma: Part 1)" and "As the Glorious Weep (Roma: Part 2)" really show what Kataklysm is capable of doing. "Wounds" works so well because it is completely different to the rest of the album, specifically because of its slower tempo. Its good to hear Kataklysm change speed for this song. "Il Diavolo in Me" is an excellent brutal song that makes the other similar songs pale in comparison. Finally, the two "Roma" songs feature great melodies while maintaining the brutality of the band.
With the rest of the album Kataklysm really doesnt seem interested in trying other types of new ideas. They just seem content in going with the motions and it sounds like just a duplicate of other bands that frankly play it better. Even the first few seconds of the album dont sound totally originally when you hear the words "Pain has a face, allow me to show it to you". Cryptopsys last album had a similar entrance.
Epic (The Poetry of War) has its moments but they are few and far between. Sure, its brutal but this is not an album that one will probably hear a lot. I know I would rather spend the time of listening to this sort of music from another band.
Nuclear Blast - 2001
Visit the Nuclear Blast website
Visit the Kataklysm website
By Rodrigo
The new Kataklysm album is upon us and Epic (The Poetry of War) is the the sort of album that one can expect from the Canadian band. Its brutal, its unrelenting, its a headbangers dream and its the sort of album you want to hear to blow some steam off. Yet it is also an album that really offers nothing new. One gets the feeling that what you hear in this album you have heard in other albums, mainly with Cryptopsy and Dying Fetus.
Thats what this album basically boils down to. The drumming by Max Duhamel is simpler but too similar to Flo Mouniers drumming. The singing by Maurizio Iacono is also similar to Mike DiSalvos style but Maurizio does mix it up with a high-pitch voice from time to time. The guitar riffs are straightforward and heavy but I was hoping for more complexity.
Thats not to say that Epic (The Poetry of War) is a bad album but just an album that doesnt move this sort of music forward. Kataklysm is stuck in neutral, not moving forward or backward. This is unfortunate because the better songs from the album like "Il Diavolo in Me", "Wounds", "Era of the Mercyless (Roma: Part 1)" and "As the Glorious Weep (Roma: Part 2)" really show what Kataklysm is capable of doing. "Wounds" works so well because it is completely different to the rest of the album, specifically because of its slower tempo. Its good to hear Kataklysm change speed for this song. "Il Diavolo in Me" is an excellent brutal song that makes the other similar songs pale in comparison. Finally, the two "Roma" songs feature great melodies while maintaining the brutality of the band.
With the rest of the album Kataklysm really doesnt seem interested in trying other types of new ideas. They just seem content in going with the motions and it sounds like just a duplicate of other bands that frankly play it better. Even the first few seconds of the album dont sound totally originally when you hear the words "Pain has a face, allow me to show it to you". Cryptopsys last album had a similar entrance.
Epic (The Poetry of War) has its moments but they are few and far between. Sure, its brutal but this is not an album that one will probably hear a lot. I know I would rather spend the time of listening to this sort of music from another band.
