Review found at http://www.royalcarnage.com/
Doom Metal is definitely not my bag but one thing that I can succinctly articulate about this album is its meddling interference with my previous love affair for OPETHs Blackwater Park and AGALLOCHs Of Stone, Wind and Pillor. The interference has reached such a crisis point that I feel my next outburst may have me confined to a straight jacket. I've realized that the craftsmanship of this album is much better than the two aforementioned albums and its songs have been purposely designed to make a permanent fixture upon my brain.
So who are NOVEMBERS DOOM? Formed in 1989, the band secured their first deal with Regress Records in 1992. Their later albums were recorded under Avantgarde/Nuclear Blast banners but that relationship ended in 2000, when they became an official member of the Dark Symphonies family. Their albums to date include: Amid Its Hallowed Mirth (1995), For Every Leaf that Falls (1997), Of Sculptured Ivy and Stone Flowers (1999), The Knowing (2000), Amid Its Hallowed Mirth (Re-release 2001). To Welcome the Fade is their most recent (2002) and was produced by Neil Kernon - Grammy award winning producer whos other credentials include working with QUEENSRYCHE, JUDAS PRIEST and YES. The artwork on the album was created by the legendary Travis Smith, of NEVERMORE, KATATONIA, OPETH and DEATH album cover fame, if indeed that sort of thing interests you.
The reason why this album, in my opinion, plays so well is because each track culminates in an amazing climax. The listener is gravitated to the tracks because of an identifiable hook that is placed within the first 10 to 60 seconds of each tracks opening. Once the listener has been ensnared, the track begins to unveil itself through the differing layers of music that set up a real expectation of what is to come. Snippets of melody are delivered modestly at appropriate moments just enough to relieve the emotional stress of the constant impending doom. I like the fact that each track has an agenda and that it delivers on its promise, instead of going off at a tangent which was always my biggest gripe with OPETH, where they really just became a band that could tie several acts together without paying much attention to the overall storyline. (See Blackwater Park for a perfect example of a band just going through the motions). Also, the endearing vocals on To Welcome the Fade have far more depth and emotion than Of Stone, Wind and Pillor, an album I previously regarded as a stunning mish-mosh of vocal dreams and nightmares. Again, I may be drawing comparisons that are out of my league and understanding of this particular genre, but I know what feels right and this album sits very well on my current most-played album list. That's all that matters.
The chorus that is played during Not the Strong portrays a deep sense despair which at times not only buries the listener in darkness but entombs him. Broken borrows drumming from an ancient tribe and sets an almost primordial tone to the track. Lost in a Day has an incredible chorus with lines like, I give into my life and colour it black. The dark emotions rivet the listener into believing that they are attending their own funeral. Within my Flesh depicts how we as a society are actually zombies -moving through life with no sense of purpose. With If Forever, the low, evenly-spaced drums hint at a heartbeat that is slowing down and in its last dying moments a flamenco guitar comes as a saviour from imminent death. The Spirit Seed utilises a dead-weight guitar sound that plays slightly off-key to give an impression of unwavering death. Torn opens as if its a country song - very off balancing. The track does go back to its roots, however, and then we hear death vocals emitting an emotional distress signal. In The Lifeless Silhouette, the piano sections lift the track beyond any form of verbal articulation. Dark Fields for Brilliance has soft vocals against a guitar sound that has been induced with copious amounts of alcohol. The track is capitalising on its ease of which it can sustain a listener and is filled with peaks & troughs which amplify as we reach mid-point. The female vocalist heeds the advice of the other instruments as we reach climax and then suddenly a final burst of catastrophe is thrown through the speakers sheer brilliance.
To Welcome the Fade captures the intense feelings of imminent doom leading to claustrophobic fears of paranoia and mental degeneration. It's a beautiful thing.
Doom Metal is definitely not my bag but one thing that I can succinctly articulate about this album is its meddling interference with my previous love affair for OPETHs Blackwater Park and AGALLOCHs Of Stone, Wind and Pillor. The interference has reached such a crisis point that I feel my next outburst may have me confined to a straight jacket. I've realized that the craftsmanship of this album is much better than the two aforementioned albums and its songs have been purposely designed to make a permanent fixture upon my brain.
So who are NOVEMBERS DOOM? Formed in 1989, the band secured their first deal with Regress Records in 1992. Their later albums were recorded under Avantgarde/Nuclear Blast banners but that relationship ended in 2000, when they became an official member of the Dark Symphonies family. Their albums to date include: Amid Its Hallowed Mirth (1995), For Every Leaf that Falls (1997), Of Sculptured Ivy and Stone Flowers (1999), The Knowing (2000), Amid Its Hallowed Mirth (Re-release 2001). To Welcome the Fade is their most recent (2002) and was produced by Neil Kernon - Grammy award winning producer whos other credentials include working with QUEENSRYCHE, JUDAS PRIEST and YES. The artwork on the album was created by the legendary Travis Smith, of NEVERMORE, KATATONIA, OPETH and DEATH album cover fame, if indeed that sort of thing interests you.
The reason why this album, in my opinion, plays so well is because each track culminates in an amazing climax. The listener is gravitated to the tracks because of an identifiable hook that is placed within the first 10 to 60 seconds of each tracks opening. Once the listener has been ensnared, the track begins to unveil itself through the differing layers of music that set up a real expectation of what is to come. Snippets of melody are delivered modestly at appropriate moments just enough to relieve the emotional stress of the constant impending doom. I like the fact that each track has an agenda and that it delivers on its promise, instead of going off at a tangent which was always my biggest gripe with OPETH, where they really just became a band that could tie several acts together without paying much attention to the overall storyline. (See Blackwater Park for a perfect example of a band just going through the motions). Also, the endearing vocals on To Welcome the Fade have far more depth and emotion than Of Stone, Wind and Pillor, an album I previously regarded as a stunning mish-mosh of vocal dreams and nightmares. Again, I may be drawing comparisons that are out of my league and understanding of this particular genre, but I know what feels right and this album sits very well on my current most-played album list. That's all that matters.
The chorus that is played during Not the Strong portrays a deep sense despair which at times not only buries the listener in darkness but entombs him. Broken borrows drumming from an ancient tribe and sets an almost primordial tone to the track. Lost in a Day has an incredible chorus with lines like, I give into my life and colour it black. The dark emotions rivet the listener into believing that they are attending their own funeral. Within my Flesh depicts how we as a society are actually zombies -moving through life with no sense of purpose. With If Forever, the low, evenly-spaced drums hint at a heartbeat that is slowing down and in its last dying moments a flamenco guitar comes as a saviour from imminent death. The Spirit Seed utilises a dead-weight guitar sound that plays slightly off-key to give an impression of unwavering death. Torn opens as if its a country song - very off balancing. The track does go back to its roots, however, and then we hear death vocals emitting an emotional distress signal. In The Lifeless Silhouette, the piano sections lift the track beyond any form of verbal articulation. Dark Fields for Brilliance has soft vocals against a guitar sound that has been induced with copious amounts of alcohol. The track is capitalising on its ease of which it can sustain a listener and is filled with peaks & troughs which amplify as we reach mid-point. The female vocalist heeds the advice of the other instruments as we reach climax and then suddenly a final burst of catastrophe is thrown through the speakers sheer brilliance.
To Welcome the Fade captures the intense feelings of imminent doom leading to claustrophobic fears of paranoia and mental degeneration. It's a beautiful thing.
