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Eeriness - Paths review



Reviewer:
8.8

7 users:
7.14
Band: Eeriness
Album: Paths
Release date: March 2007


01. Grief And Despair
02. Neurosia
03. Afraid To Lose
04. Facing Up To My Destiny
05. The Cruelty Of Life
06. Thanatos
07. Overshadowed
08. Beyond The Shades
09. Time
10. Drifting Darkness

Eeriness is a band coming from Switzerland, a country with not so many bands, but keeping high quality standards with the music the local acts have to present (Celtic Frost, Coroner, Lacrimosa, Samael to name a few). They move in gothic metal soundscapes and within 2007 they managed to return with their second album, "Paths", an album that will entrance your senses with the poetic atmosphere it evokes through its fragile, yet metallic, aesthetic.

Ten compositions and 47 minutes of beautiful music to worship with all of your heart is what Eeriness have to offer through their new album. "Paths" starts echoing in your room and you slowly start losing yourself into its gentle nature that devours your esoteric world in the most kind way, so beautifully that you can't deny this process. Every single instrument and vocal line partaking in this attempt is well-conceived and well-executed, giving you the impression that everything is flowing naturally, except for the male vocals of which i will speak soon enough so as to not be misunderstood and make my statement clearer and not lower Philipp Gnos' interpretation.

The guitars offer some really inspired work, the riffing is bittersweet and plays an important role in the atmosphere of the album, whether the guitars have a more emotional edge or a more dynamic one, a more soloing attitude or a more acoustic one, they never fail to create the strong core of the compositions and pave the way for the rest of the instruments and the vocals to enter and adorn the soundscape in the most ideal way! The rhythm section holds tight the compositions with its groove and power in an unerring way. The violoncello and the piano/keyboards dance together in a poetic manner their heart-rending waltz, with the violoncello adding a dramatic and doleful sense to the compositions, the piano melodies adding an elegance to the overall soundscape and the keyboards either a more emotional aspect or a more intense symphonic one. Just listen to the piano/keyboard work on "The Cruelty Of Life" and if you won't find it at least fabulous then i really don't know what to say. The female vocals is a highlight itself, Sirkka Skald has one of the most beautiful female operatic voices in the metal scene in my opinion. She's not so present in the album, and speaking of that i mean when the time comes to compare them with other bands of the scene that use female vocals. Eeriness use female vocals through their compositions enough times so as to not sound boring but also make their presence in the most appropriate way and lend another tone to the compositions when needed, escalating the emotional charge of the songs in a more fragile way. The male vocals now, they are just good, having either a semi-grunting or a pure grunting accent, a little bit of singing as well at times, but somehow Philipp Gnos makes them sound as if they were the most ideal vocals for the music of Eeriness, they pace beautifully with the compositions making them a part of the music that shouldn't be missing! Some people might need time to get used to the vocals, just give the album a few spins paying attention to everything as a unity and you're going to love them.

The album flows as one, everything is made to make "Paths" go on as a unity, a very important factor since this release is going to monopolise your interest for a long time. It is one of the most emotionally sincere releases in the gothic metal scene for 2007, the more you listen to "Paths" the more paths you discover through the compositions, it becomes a sweet addiction to fill your nighttime with bittersweet visions and memories.

PS: Thanatos, which is the 6th song of the album, is a greek word and means "death".


Rating breakdown
Performance: 9
Songwriting: 9
Originality: 8
Production: 9





Written on 08.04.2007 by "It is myself I have never met, whose face is pasted on the underside of my mind."


Comments

Comments: 3   [ 1 ignored ]   Visited by: 33 users
08.04.2007 - 03:24
Rating: 8
Bas
Retired Staff
i absolutely agree with most of what's written in this review
it's really a fantastic album which you can listen to over and over again, as you said switzerland does have a few very high quality metal bands, and of those eeriness are definitely near the very top, awesome cd.
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BAS - Beautifully Accented Sexiness
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08.04.2007 - 18:20
Lily_Lazer
Outdated
When I san "Eeriness - Paths" in the reviews corner, I automatically thought that is should be a review by Bas. I opened and started reading and I noticed, that something's different in here. First of all "Celtic Frost, Coroner, Lacrimosa, Samael" - this is what Bas wouldn't mention as one of those local specialty bands. I read the review and think: oh come on, since when bas writes like this. And before I wanted to tell wtf has happened to him in MSN, I noticed the author's name under the review.

Rozz, since when do you listen to Eeriness? Nice review, though ^^
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-Lily
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10.04.2007 - 09:14
Syk
myspace/bonerama
I guessed it was Rozz as soon as I looked at "Genre:"
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death ? thrash ? death/doom/prog ? Hail Zoldon!

he's not the kind you have to wind up on Sundays
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