Thoughts about CHARACTER

[Donnie Darko]

Best album Iv heard in a long time

 

[wildfyr]

early favorites:

Senses Tied / Lost to Apathy
The Endless Feed
The New Build
Am I 1
Out of Nothing
Mind Matters

 

[Arch]

Favorites, so far:
Dry Run
Out of Nothing
My Negation
LtA
The New Build

 

[mjollnir1965]

This album slays! It is so much better than DD and that was no small feat. I have posted this to all the BBs I belong to to say that this is album of the year! I don't see to much to top this in 2005.

 

[Didl]

Character is excellent. It took me several spins to get into the album and to enjoy it. I own it since the official release date and i can honestly say now that it is among my fav DT albums next to Gallery and Haven. In my opinion it is better than DD. I think DD had some weak points, everytime i listened to DD i was not completely satisfied and always thought that there is still some space left for improvement. And yeah, finally improvement came with Character! DT are absolutely unbeatable in this genre.

 

[Eitttlane]

I've done nothing the past week just listening to Character. With ever spin I pick up something new! the best DT to date IMO.

 

[Stabbie]

I pre-ordered Character, so I got it on the release day I just love it, it will be among the best records this year, maybe even the best... It is so far anyway

 

[Steiner]

I've been listening to this album non stop since I picked it up late last month. As advertised, this is not just another album that spends 2 weeks in your CD player and then gets old, and then subsequently banished to the bin of mediocre albums.

I cannot say thank you in strong enough terms to Dark Tranquillity for sticking to the sound they love, developed and have now all but perfected. As evidence by Character, in the end it's the fans who win. This is the album I've been waiting for since...well I dunno...maybe In Flames Clayman...I just know it's been a while since a metal album (much less an MDM album) this crisp and polished has been released. I'm not going to go into the specifics of the album's tone, the best tracks or even how I can repeatedly listen to it from start to finish without skipping any songs...rather I'll just leave it at "thank you" to the band for delivering an album that more than exceeds the nearly impossible expectations we the fans have fostered for 3 years now. This album is amazing. I'm blown away.

ATTN: Dark Tranquillity...thank you for Character!

 

[plintus]

Dark Tranquillity made (at least) one classic record already (tG), and every next album is a leap forward, sometimes so huge, some people are just left behind.

Character is one strong, "no-compromises", "raw emotion" and "an example in it's solidness" release, which will leave trail for years to come.

Period.

 

[plintus]

I heard the Character only once... All I can say is that it's a strong album and is definitely better than Damage Done. But for me, Character is nowhere near the Gallery (and I don't think any other album will be).

Aye, but whining about how genius The Gallery was... enough already, may be, - nothing remains the same, may be for someone da Character will become rated above The Gallery, who knows... but The Gallery is the first metal album I would introduce my kids to

 

[Overlord Purple Rainbow]

DT are absolutely unbeatable in this genre.

Boy, you said it!

And in this age of American 'Metalcore' bands and their clones playing the Americanized version of Swedish Death Metal, Dark Tranquillity still do it better!

 

[Overlord Purple Rainbow]

I believe early In Flames and the departed At The Gates were the only true competition. They were The Three Kings. And there's of course the non Gothenburg bands like Opeth and Edge Of Sanity.

Now Dark Tranquillity wear the crown...and sit upon their throne without rival.

 

[TheFourthHorseman]

The one thing I don't really like about the album is the booklet. It's just a mish-mash of colours with seemingly no relation to the songs, with the exception of the picture on the Dry Run page. The lyrics being in a row song by song is stylistically neat I suppose, but not very practical. There's the net, of course. I'm kind of disappointed in that respect anyway.

 

[La Rocque]

Every time I play this CD I like it more and more
must say when I listened to it the first time my
thought was same as it ever was.
Now after about playing about 25x
its becoming my favorite DT disc
Dare I say DT has broken new ground with their new music?

 

[Sickman]

It took a little while for Character to sink in with me, but once it did, it was well worth the wait. My favorite track is definitely "My Negation." It's the most varied song on the album, which is what I love about Dark Tranquillity. Their ability to mix the heavy with the soft is amazing. If I had one complaint about the album, it's that there isn't enough variation. Bring back the acoustic! That being said, it's still a great album from beginning to end. It's kind of tough to say where this one ranks compared to all their other albums. They've all been my favorite at one point or another, but as of right now, this one would rank just below The Mind's I.

And is it just me, or does the keyboard in "Senses Tied" sound eerily similar to the keyboard in "My Sweet Shadow" by In Flames?

 

[Blitzkrieg Pajo]

i suppose no. DT getting "inspired" by IF that would be... funny

 

[wildfyr]

i suppose no. DT getting "inspired" by IF that would be... funny

Your comment is so 1998. Why do some of you still bash In Flames music? Does it make you feel better?

 

[Blitzkrieg Pajo]

yes it makes me feel better if i think of shittrack to escape from

but now i see what you mean with those parallels sickman. dunno, maybe DT stole all of their music from somewhere else just kidding.

 

[Villain]

The one thing I don't really like about the album is the booklet. It's just a mish-mash of colours with seemingly no relation to the songs, with the exception of the picture on the Dry Run page. The lyrics being in a row song by song is stylistically neat I suppose, but not very practical. There's the net, of course. I'm kind of disappointed in that respect anyway.

As someone who pays quite a lot of attention to the lyrics (especially in DT's case) I agree with the notion that having them in a row is not too user-friendly. However, other than that I think the booklet is great. I especially like the first opening with the lyrics for The New Build and the picture of Mikael half-crouching on the wet "street" with the haunting buildings on the background - it really gives me a very cold feeling of being suppressed and creates a wonderful contrast with the emotional, aggressive outburst that is The New Build. The usage of black, white and red colour in the booklet is very effective, although I probably must admit there could be more variation overall.

-Villain

 

[Overlord Purple Rainbow]

I think the artwork fits the music. Somewhat stark and futuristic, yet quietly chaotic.