The Living Fields – Running out of Daylight (2011)

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In days where most American bands are trying to be as vanilla as they can in order to play what’s popular and/or achieve fame, it is quite enjoyable to get bands like The Living Fields and find that there are still lone warriors trying to combine different genres and produce very interesting (and fresh) sounding music.

Mixing a hefty dose of Death/Doom Metal with Pagan/Viking/Folk influences, “Running out of Daylight” is one of the richest and multi-leveled releases we have received in 2011 and made us take more than a fare dose of spins before we could actually write anything about it. With the opening “Remnant”, the band quickly delivers a powerful Doom foundation with classical string instruments in a way that bands like Ashes You Leave and Silent Stream of Godless Elegy do in their own respective areas. With crushing guitars and interesting tempo changes, the band dances around the lines of Doom brutality and melody seamlessly.

In “Perseverance” we are quickly confused between Viking/Pagan Metal and Epic Doom Metal. While blurring this line, the band does a great job in crafting an 8 minute emotional rollercoaster ride. The tempos and structure is shifted to a more traditional Epic Doom Metal with “From Miseries to Blood…” but The Living Fields still keep their core sound very much fresh and multi-textured. In a Neo-Folk fashion, “When the Walls Go Up” the album’s momentum is nicely broken up and allows for a little breathing room.

‘Halfway’ through this release, “Bitterness” is our second favorite song due to the emotionally charged slow passages and tempo changes. Up until now we have had all kinds of different vocal styles ranging from growls to Heavy/Power Metal screams to Neo-Folk clean sections, in “Glacial Movements” we have a nice combination of almost all styles in an action packed song. The 16 minute epic “Running out of Daylight” is a clear choice for the best song of this album. This song is divided into multiple movements of chaotic and crushing beauty that makes us wonder if this band will even be able to craft a song as close to perfection as this one.

With brilliantly written songs, perfectly executed string instruments and multiple vocal style attacks, it seems very unlikely that this band will keep going unnoticed. Signed to Candlelight records, we hope to keep hearing more about The Living Fields and their unique mixture of musical genres in the years to come. If you are looking for something different and well crafted, wait no more and go and check out this brilliant release.

Band: The Living Fields Album: Running out of Daylight
Label: Candlelight Records

Release: July 18th, 2011

Oficial Site myspace
Genre: Epic Doom Metal

Country: USA

Rating: 91/100
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