Shroud of Bereavement - Alone Beside Her
Screaming Ferret Wreckords - SFW0066 - January 2007
By George Grant
My first introduction to Shroud of Bereavement was with their split on Oak Knoll Productions. I was impressed with their self proclaimed genre of neo-classical doom metal. However, there were moments within the two songs that seemed to drag on a bit. With their debut full length album, Alone Beside Her, I hoped that Shroud of Bereavement would take their time on the compositions, and make this a better listen.
I was not disappointed. Very quickly, I could sense a large step forward in Shrouds songwriting. There are very few moments on the album that drag on. Instead, Shroud of Bereavement weaves their moments of harsh doom metal seamlessly with beautiful acoustic interludes. It is these acoustic interludes, which are accompanied by strings that are the real highlights of the album. The compositional work on these interludes is quite superb. Very easily a band can get carried away with their string arrangements, but Shroud of Bereavement seems to follow the old standard that less is more.
Even the female vocals, that I felt to be a bit lacking on the previous split A Maddening Hue, have seen an improvement. Instead of adopting an airy feel to them, Shroud has chosen a richer tone to the vocals that still paint a melancholy picture. Male clean vocals are also heard sparingly throughout the album. The use of these vocals in the closing track, 'The Forever Dance,' reminded me very much to Agallochs 'A Desolation Song' from the album The Mantel.
Overall, I feel that this album is a large step forward for Shroud of Bereavement. The improvements in compositions really keep the listeners attention from beginning to end. The emotions placed into the acoustic sections easily shine through, and are no doubt a great selling point on the album. Some work could be done in cleaning up the albums production, especially with regards to the guitar and drums. Yet, in the total scheme of things this production is hardly a deterrence.
Official Shroud of Bereavement Website
Official Screaming Ferret Wreckords Website
Screaming Ferret Wreckords - SFW0066 - January 2007
By George Grant
My first introduction to Shroud of Bereavement was with their split on Oak Knoll Productions. I was impressed with their self proclaimed genre of neo-classical doom metal. However, there were moments within the two songs that seemed to drag on a bit. With their debut full length album, Alone Beside Her, I hoped that Shroud of Bereavement would take their time on the compositions, and make this a better listen.
I was not disappointed. Very quickly, I could sense a large step forward in Shrouds songwriting. There are very few moments on the album that drag on. Instead, Shroud of Bereavement weaves their moments of harsh doom metal seamlessly with beautiful acoustic interludes. It is these acoustic interludes, which are accompanied by strings that are the real highlights of the album. The compositional work on these interludes is quite superb. Very easily a band can get carried away with their string arrangements, but Shroud of Bereavement seems to follow the old standard that less is more.
Even the female vocals, that I felt to be a bit lacking on the previous split A Maddening Hue, have seen an improvement. Instead of adopting an airy feel to them, Shroud has chosen a richer tone to the vocals that still paint a melancholy picture. Male clean vocals are also heard sparingly throughout the album. The use of these vocals in the closing track, 'The Forever Dance,' reminded me very much to Agallochs 'A Desolation Song' from the album The Mantel.
Overall, I feel that this album is a large step forward for Shroud of Bereavement. The improvements in compositions really keep the listeners attention from beginning to end. The emotions placed into the acoustic sections easily shine through, and are no doubt a great selling point on the album. Some work could be done in cleaning up the albums production, especially with regards to the guitar and drums. Yet, in the total scheme of things this production is hardly a deterrence.
Official Shroud of Bereavement Website
Official Screaming Ferret Wreckords Website
