The Living Fields - S/T
Harvester Records - HR002 - 2007
By George Grant
The internet has propelled the scope of music to unfathomable heights. Not only in terms of presenting music but also the recording of music. The Living Fields is one of many bands nowadays that has members from different countries. In fact, the members of The Living Fields have never actually met during the recording of their self-titled debut album. Yet, as with many projects that are placed under this working condition the musical output suffers. I believe it is due to this distance, despite the possibilities with technology, which has made the compositions weak and disconnected.
The Living Fields play a diverse style of doom metal with many dynamic changes. Within the course of a song the band will change from the heavy dirge style mostly found in doom to an acoustic reflective passage and then back again. Added to the two styles are touches of chamber strings to color specific moments of the album. The problem with The Living Fields is how quickly the band will change between the styles. Before a groove or riff has fully been explored, especially within the heavier moments, the band transitions to the acoustic sections and kill any momentum. A clear example of this is in the track Feast for the Earth where in the opening section the band is able to blend the heaviness of their doom metal with the strings to create an epic and lush sound. However, instead of keeping the moment going the band abruptly stops after not even a minute into the song and allows for an acoustic interlude to take over. Overall it makes the album very frustrating.
The music transitions wont be the only thing to get on your nerves either. The vocals of singer Jon Higgs are definitely the weakest point of the three member band. Over the course of the album Higgs explores many different styles of vocals for the ever changing music from screams to growls and even falsetto vocals. It is these falsetto vocals that really get on my nerves. They do nothing for the music and really are quite comical at times. The vocals are so high pitched and such a contrast to the music that its hard to fathom why the band included them in the music, unless of course Higgs didnt include them in the file transfers between members.
The Living Fields is a classic example of a band trying to fill their pallet with as many influences as they can without focusing on creating solid music. Their constant transitions make it a very frustrating listen that ultimately leaves the music no room to develop or travel.
Official The Living Fields Website
Official Harvester Records Website
Harvester Records - HR002 - 2007
By George Grant
The internet has propelled the scope of music to unfathomable heights. Not only in terms of presenting music but also the recording of music. The Living Fields is one of many bands nowadays that has members from different countries. In fact, the members of The Living Fields have never actually met during the recording of their self-titled debut album. Yet, as with many projects that are placed under this working condition the musical output suffers. I believe it is due to this distance, despite the possibilities with technology, which has made the compositions weak and disconnected.
The Living Fields play a diverse style of doom metal with many dynamic changes. Within the course of a song the band will change from the heavy dirge style mostly found in doom to an acoustic reflective passage and then back again. Added to the two styles are touches of chamber strings to color specific moments of the album. The problem with The Living Fields is how quickly the band will change between the styles. Before a groove or riff has fully been explored, especially within the heavier moments, the band transitions to the acoustic sections and kill any momentum. A clear example of this is in the track Feast for the Earth where in the opening section the band is able to blend the heaviness of their doom metal with the strings to create an epic and lush sound. However, instead of keeping the moment going the band abruptly stops after not even a minute into the song and allows for an acoustic interlude to take over. Overall it makes the album very frustrating.
The music transitions wont be the only thing to get on your nerves either. The vocals of singer Jon Higgs are definitely the weakest point of the three member band. Over the course of the album Higgs explores many different styles of vocals for the ever changing music from screams to growls and even falsetto vocals. It is these falsetto vocals that really get on my nerves. They do nothing for the music and really are quite comical at times. The vocals are so high pitched and such a contrast to the music that its hard to fathom why the band included them in the music, unless of course Higgs didnt include them in the file transfers between members.
The Living Fields is a classic example of a band trying to fill their pallet with as many influences as they can without focusing on creating solid music. Their constant transitions make it a very frustrating listen that ultimately leaves the music no room to develop or travel.
Official The Living Fields Website
Official Harvester Records Website
