Satariel - Hydra
Regain Records - RR 069 - 2005
By Philip Whitehouse
If Dark Tranquillity overdosed on magic mushrooms and Paradise Lost albums, the result might possibly sound something like Satariel. Expansive, atmospheric synths and an interplay between harsh and clean vocals couple with riffs that swing between latter-day Soilwork-esque catchy heaviness and more full-blooded chord progressions to produce an album of intriguiging contrasts and atmospheres.
After a somewhat underwhelming opening track, 'The Freedom Fall', the album starts to gather pace and catch the attention. Second track 'Be You Angel, Be You Beast' for the most part actually sounds like it could have fallen off Soilwork's last album, were it not for the vocalist's more morose, gothic-metal-sounding clean vocal refrains and the spacious production that gives the songs an altogether more spaced-out vibe than a brutal one. That is until the opening riffs of anthemic album highlight 'Claw The Clouds' really kick the album into gear, and the production gets behind the stabs of drums behind the chords to make them a heavy double-punch at the beginning of the song.
From then on, the songs manage to segue between the feelings of melancholic ambience (fuelled by the infrequent down-tempo passages and the well-arranged synths), more uplifting choruses, and stomping, heavy riffage with considerable aplomb. However, the song writing is a tad inconsistent - where 'Be You Angel, Be You Beast', 'Claw The Clouds' and 'The Springrise' are excellently written and memorable tracks, I find 'Vengeance Is Hers' and the somewhat plodding '300 Years Old' to be rather forgettable (however, the latter is a goth-club dancefloor hit if ever I heard one). Overall then, a generally impressive if inconsistent release.
7/10
Official Satariel Website
Official Regain Records Website
Regain Records - RR 069 - 2005
By Philip Whitehouse
If Dark Tranquillity overdosed on magic mushrooms and Paradise Lost albums, the result might possibly sound something like Satariel. Expansive, atmospheric synths and an interplay between harsh and clean vocals couple with riffs that swing between latter-day Soilwork-esque catchy heaviness and more full-blooded chord progressions to produce an album of intriguiging contrasts and atmospheres.
After a somewhat underwhelming opening track, 'The Freedom Fall', the album starts to gather pace and catch the attention. Second track 'Be You Angel, Be You Beast' for the most part actually sounds like it could have fallen off Soilwork's last album, were it not for the vocalist's more morose, gothic-metal-sounding clean vocal refrains and the spacious production that gives the songs an altogether more spaced-out vibe than a brutal one. That is until the opening riffs of anthemic album highlight 'Claw The Clouds' really kick the album into gear, and the production gets behind the stabs of drums behind the chords to make them a heavy double-punch at the beginning of the song.
From then on, the songs manage to segue between the feelings of melancholic ambience (fuelled by the infrequent down-tempo passages and the well-arranged synths), more uplifting choruses, and stomping, heavy riffage with considerable aplomb. However, the song writing is a tad inconsistent - where 'Be You Angel, Be You Beast', 'Claw The Clouds' and 'The Springrise' are excellently written and memorable tracks, I find 'Vengeance Is Hers' and the somewhat plodding '300 Years Old' to be rather forgettable (however, the latter is a goth-club dancefloor hit if ever I heard one). Overall then, a generally impressive if inconsistent release.
7/10
Official Satariel Website
Official Regain Records Website
