Album Reviews

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    Mournful Congregation – The Book of Kings (2011)

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    Australian Funeral Doom masters have returned with another release that will crush your soul and spirit, and you will be begging for more. In “The Book of Kings”, Mournful Congregation present four tracks clocking in at an impressive 76 minutes of morale-crushing Funeral Doom Metal, the stuff nightmares are made of. If you are a fan of the genre, be prepared to burn all your previous Funeral Doom CD’s and only listen to this gem for a few years (until the band releases something else).

    With the band’s traditional three guitarist approach, the album opens up with the gut wrenching, 19 minute “The Catechism of Depression”. Not only does this track has an epic title, it also features excellent and depressive guitar riffing, a tempo so nicely set up that you could listen to this until you grow old, and a very emotional flow. This monumental opening track features a nice mixture of distorted guitar sections (tuned very low of course) and some acoustic passages that add to the emotional charge of this song.

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    Nemesea – The Quiet Resistance (2011)

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    Four years have passed since Nemeasea’s last album “In Control” and on this 2011 they return stronger than ever with the very well crafted “The Quiet Resistance” release. Morphing from a Symphonic Gothic Metal outfit to a more alternative and fresher Gothic Rock sound, the band manages to keep things ‘heavy’ and not sound overly Pop-ish like many Gothic Rock/Metal bands have been doing in the last years.

    Lead by the charismatic and powerful vocals of Manda Ophuis, Nemesea’s sound has matured greatly over the years and now they deliver confident and efficient songs that go straight to the point and never get dull. The band’s alternative and almost mainstream sound is still on their own terms and they never sound like a mash up of Britney Spears with some distorted guitars thrown into the mix (hint: Amaranthe).

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    Svölk – Svölk ‘Em All (2011)

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    Playing something called “Bear Metal”, according to what the band says, Svölk delivers us their latest full-length release “Svölk ‘ Em All”. This release is basically their 2009 self-released debut but with three new songs. Through 12 tracks the band delivers a heavy dosage of Stoner Rock/Metal elements with some ‘Nordic redneck attitude’, but it still sounds just like any other Stoner Rock album.

    With all the hundreds of Stoner Rock/ Metal albums that come out almost each day, it is very hard to keep listening to the same stuff and like all of it. While Svölk is undoubtedly a solid band and the songs in this album are pretty good, they can’t avoid sounding just like everybody else. The best thing we found about this release is that the band does not try to play (too much) the ‘Southern’ vibe in their music, but this might be what is coming in the future of this band.

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    Autumn – Cold Comfort (2011)

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    After dabbling into more ‘mainstream friendly’ lands with their previous release “Altitude”, Autumn returns to the darker side of things with the highly emotional “Cold Comfort”. In this new release the band delivers nine beautifully crafted melodies that nicely combine Progressive Rock elements with more traditional Rock influences under a very melancholic atmosphere that had us completely hooked into the album since the first track.

    The band’s vocalist Marjan Welman seems more integrated into the band’s sound and her sultry voice fits perfectly into the darker and more melancholic mood of this release than on the band’s previous ‘pop-goth’ release from 2009. Every song in “Cold Comfort” features a nice Progressive Rock/ Melancholic Rock blend of sounds, something like The Gathering with Anneke but in a less experimental way.

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    Vomitron – No NES for the Wicked (2011)

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    Just as other people have indicated in the past, once we received a CD with a band named Vomitron and a semi-naked chick in the cover we expected the worst. However, we were quite surprised to hear that almost all tracks in this release are of extreme musical quality and very carefully crafted. Transforming old Nintento music into Metal tunes, Vomitron’s mastermind Peter Rutcho showcases his excellent musical abilities and delivers some of the best re-interpretations of these songs we have ever heard.

    Opening with a filler intro, the first real song of this release is an epic interpretation of the “Contra” theme. Showing Power Metal and Progressive Metal elements, this song will immediately get you psyched about the tracks to follow in this excellent release. “Blaster Master” is a nice combination of powerful riffing and trippy keyboard sections, a very enjoyable track for fans of futuristic Power/Progressive Metal. The song that almost everybody will be waiting for has to be “The Legend of Zelda” theme, and Vomitron does an amazing rendition thanks to Peter’s great guitar skills.

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    Tenhi – Saivo (2011)

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    After five years of ‘silence’, Tenhi band finally returns with another mystical exploration into the dark realms of neo-folk music with “Saivo”. Keeping their very dark yet lush sound intact, the band delivers 12 tracks of majestic compositions that push the boundaries of Tenhi’s sound into less traveled areas of musical exploration.

    Four years in the making, “Saivo” marks the band’s best release to date. This is due to the complexity of the songs presented and the amazing atmosphere created in this release. The dark and minimalistic passages are always present while the enigmatic vocals push the somber atmosphere into darker places. If you never heard of Tenhi before, it is very hard to find a way to explain how something this somber can be as beautiful as it is, so we strongly recommend you check out some of the band’s earlier material.

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    Nucleus Torn – Golden Age (2011)

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    Just one year after their excellent release “Andromeda Awaiting”, Nucleus Torn returns with another brilliant excursion into Avant-garde Folk Metal but now with a Progressive twist. Making homage to 70’s Progressive Rock/Metal bands, “Golden Age” is a lush release that will intoxicate you since the first minute with its very intricate and yet exquisite songs.

    Being considerably more diverse and exciting than any previous Nucleus Torn release, “Golden Age” delivers six beautifully crafted tracks that showcase the band’s ability in combining stunning musical passages with harmonious vocals. With Fredy Schnyder handling most of the instrumentation and the production work, “Golden Age” sounds as good as you can ever imagine Nucleus Torn sounding.

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    Svarti Loghin – Sea of Green (2011)

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    Blowing past the boundaries of Depressive Black Metal and ending up on the Alternative Rock side of things, today we have Svarti Loghin and their latest skillful release “Sea of Green”. The band since their last release “Drifting Through the Void” was showing extreme signs of moving away from BM, and on this latest release they complete the transition.

    Evoking elements from Alternative Rock to Grunge, “Sea of Green” features five very interesting tracks that need your complete open-mindedness or you will completely hate this release. The depressive vibe of the band is totally present in this release; this is excellent since the band has a very unique sound. However, you will have to deal with almost no Metal elements, and a very mellow and ‘alternative’ approach to things.

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    Black Cobra – Invernal (2011)

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    As hard-hitting as a bag of bricks, today we have Black Cobra’s fourth full-length release “Invernal”. Following the same devastating path as in “Chronomega”, the band delivers 40 minutes of relentless riffing and crushing drumming all packaged in eight well balanced tracks. Not reinventing the wheel or anything, Black Cobra excels at what they do and do not try anything pretentious a very effective approach due to their own sound and power.

    Getting right down to business, “Avalanche” delivers punishing riffs and well paced drums. The band’s power is made known since the first track and never goes too soft or two slow, like most Sludge/Doom bands these days. Jason’s vocals are very fitting of the music and deliver the band’s message in a powerful way. But his guitar skills are what make this release quite interesting to the ear.

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    Dark Suns – Orange (2011)

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    In this 2011 we have been treated to excellent Progressive album so far: Leprous “Bilateral”, White Willow’s “Terminal Twilight” and Dream Theater’s “A Dramatic Turn of Events”, however Dark Suns latest opus “Orange” comes just in time to find its spot between these gems in our top progressive album’s list of the year. After somewhat consolidating their change to Dark Progressive Metal/Rock in their last release “Grave Human Genuine”, the band comes back with a very cohesive and interesting sounding album with “Orange”.

    Featuring all the elements of Progressive music we all have grown to love but with a dark and sinister twist, “Orange” delivers 10 tracks of excellently composed tracks that will demand your attention since the first minutes of this release. Opening with the very psychedelic “Toy”, the band quickly delivers crazy keyboards and very effective guitar riffs. The overall atmosphere of this song is very retro and magical. The vocals are excellent since they fit the music just perfectly.

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