www.scarred-for-life.de has also done a review, check the link: http://www.smalltowncriminals.de/newsfl/content/modules/news/article.php?storyid=3555
Reviews for "The Unsettling Dark" LP
- Thread starter the_drip
- Start date
Fifth_Horseman
Watch out, it's sharp!
I found a review in german... here it is, even though I totally don't agree with the reviewers opinion.
http://www.metal1.info/reviews/reviews.php?rev_id=2762
http://www.metal1.info/reviews/reviews.php?rev_id=2762
Fifth_Horseman
Watch out, it's sharp!
The first paragraph is pretty much the same as in most other reviews (good blackmetal doesn't have to come from Europe etc.)
His points in a nutshell: He compares your album to Ensaved's "Ruun" but says you are more conventional, faster and more brutal. He also claims that Michael sounds exactly like Kjellson on that album.
He likes the second part of Ascension alot, but complains that the rest of the album doesn't feature much variety or memorable moments (wtf!?)... he claims that after several listens, nothing except Ascension pt.2 retained in his memory.
He also complains that there's no clean vocals and almost no memorable melodies to be found (even bigger wtf!?).
He finishes by saying that the album is nice to listen to and he can recommend it because it's a style that is not milked to death; he says that if you explore your calm and emotional side more in the future - like on the very good "A Season in Hell" - and combine it with the modern blackmetal elements, you'll soon do a very good album in this style, as the instrumental skills and good production for this is already present.
Ok I think I fucked up the grammar rules of indirect speech there, but hope you get the point.
Let me just add that my own (brutal deathmetal) band got a review from that webzine as well on our debut album (not the same reviewer though), and we also lost points because of "not enough variety and no genre-crossing or avantgarde elements". I have read many other reviews on that site in the past, and some are outright laughable, while some others I do agree with.
Well, I like that webzine for their news section, not for their reviews.
His points in a nutshell: He compares your album to Ensaved's "Ruun" but says you are more conventional, faster and more brutal. He also claims that Michael sounds exactly like Kjellson on that album.
He likes the second part of Ascension alot, but complains that the rest of the album doesn't feature much variety or memorable moments (wtf!?)... he claims that after several listens, nothing except Ascension pt.2 retained in his memory.
He also complains that there's no clean vocals and almost no memorable melodies to be found (even bigger wtf!?).
He finishes by saying that the album is nice to listen to and he can recommend it because it's a style that is not milked to death; he says that if you explore your calm and emotional side more in the future - like on the very good "A Season in Hell" - and combine it with the modern blackmetal elements, you'll soon do a very good album in this style, as the instrumental skills and good production for this is already present.
Ok I think I fucked up the grammar rules of indirect speech there, but hope you get the point.
Let me just add that my own (brutal deathmetal) band got a review from that webzine as well on our debut album (not the same reviewer though), and we also lost points because of "not enough variety and no genre-crossing or avantgarde elements". I have read many other reviews on that site in the past, and some are outright laughable, while some others I do agree with.
Well, I like that webzine for their news section, not for their reviews.
yeah, well if everyone added avant garde elements to their "brutal death metal" then it wouldn't be avant garde anymore would it.
thanks for the more cohesive translation.
thanks for the more cohesive translation.
Not sure if you've see this one
http://www.metal-observer.com/articles.php?lid=1&sid=1&id=14000
8/10
Being hand-picked by an act of EMPERORs stature as tour-mates and having the venerable James Murphy guest on your album will most certainly create a huge buzz around your band. But when it comes down to the nitty gritty its the actual music that counts, and this is the area where MARTRIDEN totally succeeds. Quite simply, if youre an up and coming band this is the debut album you want to release. Yep, The Unsettling Dark is a classy affair through and through and it should put the decidedly un-Metal Montana firmly on the map.
Genre-hopping and/or genre-blending is nothing new in the fickle world of Metal and while it can definitely diversify a bands sound it more often than not leads to an incoherent mish-mash state of affairs where bands often fail to effectively integrate their influences into a unified whole. MARTRIDEN, on the other hand, pulls this off effortlessly by incorporating only the best elements of Death and melodic Black Metal. Take the heaviness and crunchy riff-centered attack of prime MORBID ANGEL and Heartwork-era CARCASS, top it off with Nemesis Divina-era SATYRICON and you have The Unsettling Dark, and album built to rock and rock hard. The riffs are always there to slice n dice in true old school fashion while the keyboards add a rich background texture to proceedings without ever being overwrought. Special note must also go Michael Cooks vocal work it constantly remains in harsh territory and his blackened rasp carried an undeniable sense of character and emotion, something that cant always be said of extreme vocalists.
While being mostly mid-paced melodic Death/Black Metal there are many morsels of enjoyment to be found throughout these 10 tracks. They have an uncanny knack for musical counterpoint, something deftly illustrated by the various instrumental touches throughout the album. The way they shift from a blast-beat driven onslaught to a contemplative acoustic/keyboard flourish is commendable. For excellent examples of this look no further than the dreamy Ascension Pt. II or the somber second-half of A Season In Hell. Elsewhere there are also heavy stompers like Prelude and The Enigma Of Fate for you to sink your teeth into.
Well-written, smartly paced and imbued with a tangible sense of passion The Unsettling Dark is an album well worth checking out. Its still early days but these newcomers have perhaps delivered the debut of the year with this sublime effort.
(Online March 20, 2008)
http://www.metal-observer.com/articles.php?lid=1&sid=1&id=14000
8/10
Being hand-picked by an act of EMPERORs stature as tour-mates and having the venerable James Murphy guest on your album will most certainly create a huge buzz around your band. But when it comes down to the nitty gritty its the actual music that counts, and this is the area where MARTRIDEN totally succeeds. Quite simply, if youre an up and coming band this is the debut album you want to release. Yep, The Unsettling Dark is a classy affair through and through and it should put the decidedly un-Metal Montana firmly on the map.
Genre-hopping and/or genre-blending is nothing new in the fickle world of Metal and while it can definitely diversify a bands sound it more often than not leads to an incoherent mish-mash state of affairs where bands often fail to effectively integrate their influences into a unified whole. MARTRIDEN, on the other hand, pulls this off effortlessly by incorporating only the best elements of Death and melodic Black Metal. Take the heaviness and crunchy riff-centered attack of prime MORBID ANGEL and Heartwork-era CARCASS, top it off with Nemesis Divina-era SATYRICON and you have The Unsettling Dark, and album built to rock and rock hard. The riffs are always there to slice n dice in true old school fashion while the keyboards add a rich background texture to proceedings without ever being overwrought. Special note must also go Michael Cooks vocal work it constantly remains in harsh territory and his blackened rasp carried an undeniable sense of character and emotion, something that cant always be said of extreme vocalists.
While being mostly mid-paced melodic Death/Black Metal there are many morsels of enjoyment to be found throughout these 10 tracks. They have an uncanny knack for musical counterpoint, something deftly illustrated by the various instrumental touches throughout the album. The way they shift from a blast-beat driven onslaught to a contemplative acoustic/keyboard flourish is commendable. For excellent examples of this look no further than the dreamy Ascension Pt. II or the somber second-half of A Season In Hell. Elsewhere there are also heavy stompers like Prelude and The Enigma Of Fate for you to sink your teeth into.
Well-written, smartly paced and imbued with a tangible sense of passion The Unsettling Dark is an album well worth checking out. Its still early days but these newcomers have perhaps delivered the debut of the year with this sublime effort.
(Online March 20, 2008)
Every so often, I'm pleasantly surprised by a band that has popped up on my radar from seemingly nowheres and shatters my expectations completely. When I first received Martriden's The Unsettling Dark, I shrugged it off as yet another blackened death affair that I'd already heard 100 times before. Boy, was I wrong!
Martriden's recent claim to fame was opening for Emperor on their few US dates they did in 2007. I mention this because their blackened approach to death metal seems to take the more distinguished atmospheres of Emperor (as well as Dimmu Borgir), tosses in the brutality of more epic death metal bands such as Nile and Behemoth, with the melodic sensibilities of Dark Tranquillity and Arsis. There is a whole lot going on stylistically, but its flawlessly arranged, particularly after coming off of only 1 EP recording. One aspect that really blew me away was their ability to switch up from blasting furiously to more melodic and progressive segments. "Prelude" is the shining example of this, as the song jumps between frantic blasting speed to mid-tempo neck-thrashing to a somber piano finish.
While Martriden is highly successful at throwing lightning riffs that yet retain melodic sensibilities (see "Ascension, Pt. 1" and "Processional For the Hellfire Chariot"), I find the instrumentals to be intriguing as well. Noticably more melodic (and acoustic) to the other tracks, the progressive nature of "Ascension, Pt 2" provides a necessary break from the relentless opening of the disc, while "Immaculate Perception" wouldn't sound out of place on an Opeth disc. The "Intro" sounds like it was heavily influenced by the movie Gladiator and is one of the few intros of late that I've heard that are effective at what they do.
Martriden successfully integrate a number of different influences into their sound in a way that many bands simply fail to do. Not only having one of the strongest debuts I've heard in recent memory, I'm apt to say that these guys could easily be the next flagbearers for the US death metal movement. Any extreme metal fan simply must check this one out. Recommended!
Standout Tracks: ALL
http://www.harm.us/reviews/showreview.cfm?albID=5616&visitor=0
Martriden's recent claim to fame was opening for Emperor on their few US dates they did in 2007. I mention this because their blackened approach to death metal seems to take the more distinguished atmospheres of Emperor (as well as Dimmu Borgir), tosses in the brutality of more epic death metal bands such as Nile and Behemoth, with the melodic sensibilities of Dark Tranquillity and Arsis. There is a whole lot going on stylistically, but its flawlessly arranged, particularly after coming off of only 1 EP recording. One aspect that really blew me away was their ability to switch up from blasting furiously to more melodic and progressive segments. "Prelude" is the shining example of this, as the song jumps between frantic blasting speed to mid-tempo neck-thrashing to a somber piano finish.
While Martriden is highly successful at throwing lightning riffs that yet retain melodic sensibilities (see "Ascension, Pt. 1" and "Processional For the Hellfire Chariot"), I find the instrumentals to be intriguing as well. Noticably more melodic (and acoustic) to the other tracks, the progressive nature of "Ascension, Pt 2" provides a necessary break from the relentless opening of the disc, while "Immaculate Perception" wouldn't sound out of place on an Opeth disc. The "Intro" sounds like it was heavily influenced by the movie Gladiator and is one of the few intros of late that I've heard that are effective at what they do.
Martriden successfully integrate a number of different influences into their sound in a way that many bands simply fail to do. Not only having one of the strongest debuts I've heard in recent memory, I'm apt to say that these guys could easily be the next flagbearers for the US death metal movement. Any extreme metal fan simply must check this one out. Recommended!
Standout Tracks: ALL
http://www.harm.us/reviews/showreview.cfm?albID=5616&visitor=0
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