Seethings - Parallels
2003 - Scarlet Records
By Philip Whitehouse
Go to the Scarlet Records website.
Nu-metal influences abound on this debut album of the Swedish band fronted by former Darkane singer Lawrence Mackrory - but don't let that send you all running screaming to the hills just yet, because this platter isn't the usual example of vacuous, trend-hopping garbage that most nu-metal tends to be these days. No, in fact Seethings seem to have expanded upon the blueprint of melodic, uplifting dynamism in music that was set out by the Deftones during their White Pony era, and the resulting album is aggressive and soothing in equal measures - catharsis and tranquillity resting within the same expanse of sound.
Sounding not unlike a slightly heavier, more cerebral amalgamation of Taproot and the aforementioned Deftones, Seethings couple melodic, impressive singing from Lawrence with the tight (if unspectacular) drumming of Simon Wettervik and the soaring guitar melodies of Dennis Olsson and Peter Waites, while Lars Sodeberg keeps the lower-end rumbling along with complementary bass work. Interesting touches added to the sounds include the brief, relaxing interlude of 'Navian' which consists of bare, clean melodies and a tribal yet near subliminal drum beat, or the undisputable album highlight of 'Falling', which manages during its 7-minute length to be catchy, epic, sombre and aggressive all through quality songwriting and the undeniably breath-taking vocal performance from Lawrence.
If you can handle a band which actually has a good chance of success within the mainstream, but achieves that without losing any artistic integrity by bandwagon-jumping, taking on a strong image or saturating the media, instead choosing to concentrate on crafting quality songs - then Seethings is for you.
7.5/10
2003 - Scarlet Records
By Philip Whitehouse
Go to the Scarlet Records website.
Nu-metal influences abound on this debut album of the Swedish band fronted by former Darkane singer Lawrence Mackrory - but don't let that send you all running screaming to the hills just yet, because this platter isn't the usual example of vacuous, trend-hopping garbage that most nu-metal tends to be these days. No, in fact Seethings seem to have expanded upon the blueprint of melodic, uplifting dynamism in music that was set out by the Deftones during their White Pony era, and the resulting album is aggressive and soothing in equal measures - catharsis and tranquillity resting within the same expanse of sound.
Sounding not unlike a slightly heavier, more cerebral amalgamation of Taproot and the aforementioned Deftones, Seethings couple melodic, impressive singing from Lawrence with the tight (if unspectacular) drumming of Simon Wettervik and the soaring guitar melodies of Dennis Olsson and Peter Waites, while Lars Sodeberg keeps the lower-end rumbling along with complementary bass work. Interesting touches added to the sounds include the brief, relaxing interlude of 'Navian' which consists of bare, clean melodies and a tribal yet near subliminal drum beat, or the undisputable album highlight of 'Falling', which manages during its 7-minute length to be catchy, epic, sombre and aggressive all through quality songwriting and the undeniably breath-taking vocal performance from Lawrence.
If you can handle a band which actually has a good chance of success within the mainstream, but achieves that without losing any artistic integrity by bandwagon-jumping, taking on a strong image or saturating the media, instead choosing to concentrate on crafting quality songs - then Seethings is for you.
7.5/10
