Samael Reign of Light
Nuclear Blast Records February 8th, 2005
By Jason Jordan
On the rollercoaster that is Samaels career, Ceremony of Opposites was perhaps the top of the huge hill, whereas outings like Passage and Eternal were midway down. Reign of Light, which sees release in the United States today, is definitely at the bottom of the hill where the excitement has dissipated, and youre actively looking forward to the next thrill in the form of a twist or turn. Aside from alliteration, Samael have crafted an album that is overwhelmingly boring.
Fact is: the Swiss group isnt going to win any fans with Moongate. Its a fairly straightforward opener, and there are cool, electronic doodads shooting off now and again; but overall it fails to ensnare me. Inch Allah is slightly better, though certain sections of the aforementioned track sound extremely similar to The Kovenant. Reign of Light is atrocious, and conjures images of Rammstein. Come to think of it, the latter seemingly reverberate throughout new Samael. On Earth, Telepath, and Oriental Dawn are basically uninteresting. As the Sun witnesses Vorph (guitar, vocals) do some terribly-rendered, a cappella vox. Despite being an optimistic album lyric-wise, it seems as if this has subsequently weakened Reign of Light. Im not exactly sure if the band lost focus and/or inspiration, but the predictable spacey synthesizers, less-than-a-full-on-growl vocalizations, and lack of differentiation in song structure makes the quartets latest full-length a chore rather than a vice.
If youre at all familiar with the band, youll know the records to collect and the records to pass over. To put it bluntly, Reign of Light doesnt deserve even a sneer. Are Samael as we know them dead?
5.5/10
Isoldes Review of Samael Reign of Light
Official Samael website
Official Nuclear Blast website
Nuclear Blast Records February 8th, 2005
By Jason Jordan
On the rollercoaster that is Samaels career, Ceremony of Opposites was perhaps the top of the huge hill, whereas outings like Passage and Eternal were midway down. Reign of Light, which sees release in the United States today, is definitely at the bottom of the hill where the excitement has dissipated, and youre actively looking forward to the next thrill in the form of a twist or turn. Aside from alliteration, Samael have crafted an album that is overwhelmingly boring.
Fact is: the Swiss group isnt going to win any fans with Moongate. Its a fairly straightforward opener, and there are cool, electronic doodads shooting off now and again; but overall it fails to ensnare me. Inch Allah is slightly better, though certain sections of the aforementioned track sound extremely similar to The Kovenant. Reign of Light is atrocious, and conjures images of Rammstein. Come to think of it, the latter seemingly reverberate throughout new Samael. On Earth, Telepath, and Oriental Dawn are basically uninteresting. As the Sun witnesses Vorph (guitar, vocals) do some terribly-rendered, a cappella vox. Despite being an optimistic album lyric-wise, it seems as if this has subsequently weakened Reign of Light. Im not exactly sure if the band lost focus and/or inspiration, but the predictable spacey synthesizers, less-than-a-full-on-growl vocalizations, and lack of differentiation in song structure makes the quartets latest full-length a chore rather than a vice.
If youre at all familiar with the band, youll know the records to collect and the records to pass over. To put it bluntly, Reign of Light doesnt deserve even a sneer. Are Samael as we know them dead?
5.5/10
Isoldes Review of Samael Reign of Light
Official Samael website
Official Nuclear Blast website
