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Officium Triste - Giving Yourself Away review




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Reviewer:
9.2

86 users:
8.57
Band: Officium Triste
Album: Giving Yourself Away
Release date: May 2007


01. Your Eyes
02. My Charcoal Heart
03. Signals
04. On The Crossroad Of Souls
05. Inside The Mind
06. Master Of Your Own Demise

I'll probably be accused of favouring Dutch bands over bands from other countries after this review. So what... there's no denying that this is shaping up to be one of the best, if not the best, years ever for Dutch metal (of the thirteen bands to follow 7 are debuts). First we had After Forever, Epica and the just released Kingfisher Sky, and for some people also Within Temptation, in the symphonic metal corner, which is one of the few subgenres I am totally at a loss with, but the quality is undeniably there, then Cardamon with their melancholic metal rock who are still shopping around for a contract as we speak, Hail Of Bullets who have just released their old school death demo produced by Dan Swanö, and of course Non-Divine, Cypher, Magnacult, Obsidian, Detonation, most probably the upcoming Deinonychus as well and now one hell of a scorcher: Officium Triste, who with their Giving Yourself Away have released the top doom album of the year for me up till now.

Giving Yourself Away is only Officium Triste's fourth full-length in their thirteen years of existence. The band's previous album, Reason, was released in 2004 so finally after three years we get a follow-up. And was it worth the wait? It certainly was. For me personally I always found Reason to be their weakest album up till that point (though still a very good album) but Giving Yourself Away makes me totally forget all about that album.

Opening track Your Eyes sucks you in from the first note and shows why these Rotterdoomers are regarded by many to Holland's finest doom metal act. One of the strongest points about the band shows itself in full glory here as well: Pim's vocals are one of the best you'll ever come across in the death doom world. They are truly versatile going from his characteristic low growls to his beautiful clean voice to whispers. A big difference with the band's previous releases is that the keyboards are more on the foreground nowadays thus adding even more atmosphere.

There are no stand-out tracks to be found on Giving Yourself Away since they all shine bright. Six tracks clocking in just under fifty minutes but totally not boring for a single second. It is all over before you even notice it. Like the accompanying biography says: A must-have for fans of early Anathema, old My Dying Bride and Shape Of Despair.

A true doom masterpiece beating strong releases such as Reverend Bizarre: III So Long Suckers, Keen Of The Crow: Hyborea, Longing For Dawn: A Treacherous Ascension, Forgotten Tomb: Negative Megalomania, Candlemass: King Of The Grey Islands up till now. The new Deinonychus and upcoming Evoken have to be immensely brilliant will they be able to beat Officium Triste's Giving Yourself Away as my personal doom album of the year.

Written by Marcel Hubregtse | 09.10.2007




Comments

Comments: 11   Visited by: 148 users
09.10.2007 - 21:48
Rating: 9
Nefarious
Doom Knight
Fully agree with that review Ozman. I was completly blown away by the first song & the rest of the album lived up to that high standard. Just gonna pip Keen Of The Crow to the title of best doom album of 2007 IMO. Highly recomended!
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"FUCK!!! You're the fucking 5th person asking me in an interview about the woman in the bathtub?The problem is that I AM the fucking person in the bathtub, and I AM a fucking MAN, for fuck's sake! I hate you all!" ~ Herr Morbid
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10.10.2007 - 01:43
Southern Wind
Account deleted
Bad review, Marcel... I see that you liked the album, now I would want to hear WHY you liked it, before buying... superlative adjectives are not enough, if you actually doesn't tell you how this actually sounds, something you totally missed if not by a short reference to vocals and "atmosphere" (a used and abused term that doesn't have a meaning by itself)

Well, I hope you take this as constructive ciriticism... and I'm obviously wanting to hear this as I'm a sucker for melodic doom and I had enjoyed this band in the past.
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10.10.2007 - 14:41
Marcel Hubregtse
Grumpy Old Fuck
Written by Guest on 10.10.2007 at 01:43

Bad review, Marcel... I see that you liked the album, now I would want to hear WHY you liked it, before buying... superlative adjectives are not enough, if you actually doesn't tell you how this actually sounds, something you totally missed if not by a short reference to vocals and "atmosphere" (a used and abused term that doesn't have a meaning by itself)

Well, I hope you take this as constructive ciriticism... and I'm obviously wanting to hear this as I'm a sucker for melodic doom and I had enjoyed this band in the past.


I see what you mean. I was so blown away by it that I forgot to describe the songs. But I did mention old Anathema and some others as sound reference.
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Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal

Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight
Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.)
05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996

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11.10.2007 - 16:42
Rating: 10
Passenger
Lost To Apathy
At first my opinion wasn't as positive as yours, but, after a few listens, I've come to really enjoy this album, and understand your compliments. Great recommendation.
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You don't make up for your sins in church. You do it in the streets. You do it at home. The rest is bullshit and you know it ~ Mean Streets
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07.06.2010 - 03:43
Rating: 8
Paradox0
Unasuming Madnes
GREAT doom album. Kind of reminds me of how 11th Hour's "burden of Grief" made me feel, except unlike 11th, which I had to be in a particular setting to gain that sense of "decay and despair" so to speak, this album forced me into that realm. Also unlike that album, this one is great throughout the whole album, which enough twists to keep me interested. I liked how the band seemed to album blend traditional doom, death-doom and Gothic doom seamlessly without seemingly to try to sound like anyone. 8/10
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19.09.2010 - 22:53
Rating: 10
lord artan

Their album had a lot of changes to their...And still produce a beautiful album...Strange and mysterious sorrow meaning in music
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20.09.2010 - 07:08
Marcel Hubregtse
Grumpy Old Fuck
My owrst review review by far. ALthough I still stand by the score. Gotta agree with Southern Wind here.
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Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal

Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight
Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.)
05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996

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24.11.2012 - 17:57
Rating: 8
Erik M.

Excellent album: 9/10. The only track I like slightly less is the last one, probably because it goes on a bit too long for my tastes. Other than that, I agree with your review as well as the score.
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14.05.2013 - 07:12
Rating: 9
Daggon
Underpaid M.D.
I think this one may be my favorite Officium Triste album, that's something great coming from a high-quality discography. As always, the lyrics of every song are simple, yet beautiful, nothing cryptic or hidden, only straightforward lyrics charged with melancholic issues, and of course, lots of DOOM! Fully enjoyable.
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"Les vers savent qu'ils n'ont pas d'ailes, c'est pour cela qu'ils se cachent sous terre"
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30.06.2013 - 14:39
Fritillaria
Account deleted
"biography says: A must-have for fans of early Anathema, old My Dying Bride and Shape Of Despair" OK, gonna check it out right away.
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03.11.2015 - 23:53
Bad English
Tage Westerlund
Written by Passenger on 11.10.2007 at 16:42

At first my opinion wasn't as positive as yours, but, after a few listens, I've come to really enjoy this album, and understand your compliments. Great recommendation.


it was OK whit me whit 1th time, even now I love it since today was like I spinned this after many years
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apos;'
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