Agalloch - Ashes Against The Grain - review
Agalloch - Ashes Against The Grain - review
Tracklist
01. Limbs02. Falling Snow
03. This White Mountain On Which You Will Die
04. Fire Above, Ice Below
05. Not Unlike The Waves
06. Our Fortress Is Burning... I
07. Our Fortress Is Burning... II - Bloodbirds
08. Our Fortress Is Burning... III - The Grain
09. Scars Of The Shattered Sky (Our Fortress Has Burned To The Ground) [Double LP Vinyl 1000 Copies Limited Edition bonus]
A review by
Dream Taster June 20, 2006
Now, after several EPs and vinyl discs to bridge the gap, a new album has been brought to life, namely Ashes Against The Grain. And boy, you can already bookmark this one as one of 2006's best records.
As they mastered on their previous records, epic compositions carrying loads of longing and exquisiteness are back to the program. The opener 'Limbs' is already a great sign of things to come. Complex, fulfilling and most of all way too catchy to be tagged as Doom metal; but that's the beauty of this band, to be able to transcend the boundaries of music to define something unique.
The surprise of the record is undeniably 'Falling Snow', which features a faster tempo and a recurrent guitar theme that enhances this song tremendously. Some might be reminding of early Paradise Lost tunes, just more creative.
As the album unfolds, Agalloch's talent becomes more and more obvious and finishes taking over your mind. Without giving everything away, let's just say that 'Fire Above, Ice Below' and 'Not Unlike The Waves' are even better than the two previous songs and 'Our Fortress Is Burning' is a great three-part magnum opus that might just be Agalloch's best work up-to-date.
Creating another great album without repeating themselves, Agalloch latest should lift any doubts concerning their talent and please the crowds. Managing to assemble a killer "menu" of great quality songs, of which one cannot really settle on a favorite one for long, the combo from Portland has brought forth another one of those impossible to ignore releases.
If you have never heard of them, you ought to stop whatever you are doing to rush straight to their website to check out the most talented band in the States. You won't regret it.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 9 |
| Songwriting: | 10 |
| Originality: | 8 |
| Production: | 7 |
Written on 20.06.2006 by
Written on 20.06.2006 by
Bringing you reviews of quality music and interesting questions such as:"A picture is worth a thousand words. How many words is a song worth?"
I have only got so much patience and skills, you do the math.
Rating:
8.0
8.0
|
Rating:
8.0 |
Agalloch's Ashes Against The Grain. Never have I found another release I love so much yet feel so unsatisfied by. There's so much here, yet it feels as if so much is missing. It's so spot on, but I just don't find it a flawless or even exemplary demonstration of the genre in question. I'd call it the perfect musical embodiment of a love/hate relationship. With that said, however, I must admit that I feel a far greater abundance of the former than the latter. Read more ›› |
Rating:
10
10
Comments
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Comments:
47
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553 users
| Southern Wind
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Posts: 264
great album from one of my fav bands.i just love their creativity and amazing songwriting.and i love it when they use acoustic guitars.i'm sure they will keep up this good work
---- i'm super, thanks for asking
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Posts: 1342
It does not more Black Metal than their usual standards, I guess that's why I omitted it.
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| IgarTheTerrible
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| McDoom
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| Fayde
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| abraxas
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| Snake-Eye
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| Kurzag
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Posts: 21
This album is great. Loving it.
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| Snake-Eye
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| demogorgon51
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| canmewaterbee
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Posts: 7263
This is probably the only doom album that I can pay attention to and enjoy. 8/10
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Posts: 40071 Written by Dangerboner on 05.10.2006 at 07:06 Aarrrrrrrgggggggghhhhhhhhh this is NOT doom, not by a mile.
---- 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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Posts: 352
I don't know, but it seems that something was missing in the whole concept of the album, probably the folk touch, I'll have to get use to it!
---- And sometimes I despair At who I've become I have to come to terms With what I've done
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Posts: 136  |
Posts: 136
its just greaaaaaaaaat-i could hear it foreveeeeeeeer....
---- Don't turn away just take my hand and when you make your final stand i ll be right there i ll never leave all i ask of you is believe...
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| DragonSlayer
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Posts: 9720 Written by [user id=16818] on 05.11.2006 at 01:33 It really took you that long? :  The very first time I listened to this album, the first thing I heard was this one guitar tune way before the riff enters - from that moment on it was clear that there was no way back, either I'll have to go through the entire album or... well, there wasn't really an alternative. A pity that after several listens the riff seems to kill the hypnotic effect of the very first seconds.
---- All life begins with Nu and ends with Nu... This is the truth! This is my belief! ...At least for now. - The Mystery of Life, Vol. 841 Ch. 26
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Posts: 3820 Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 06.10.2006 at 00:50 What genre do you consider it to be?
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Posts: 136 Written by Stigmatized on 02.12.2006 at 19:01 its some kind of atmosferic metal- for me agalloch cant be put in any category-its just agalloch
---- Don't turn away just take my hand and when you make your final stand i ll be right there i ll never leave all i ask of you is believe...
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Posts: 1703
weird. even though their from Oregon, i've never heard of them coming to Seattle. the state right to the North.
---- Coldgrits
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Posts: 647
This is a great album, but The Mantle is much better. I enjoyed the screams of Solstafir on "Not unlike the waves", he rarely does those.
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| gerrard888
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This album permeates every conscious and unconscious part of your mind. The album is so beautiful it stings your eyes. Listen from start to finish again and again as it bathes you in its radiance fusing fire, water and earth elements. The production is ethereal with a drum sound second to none. Difficult to compare to others but closest to the most precious gems from Opeth and Katatonia.
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