Swallow The Sun - New Moon - review
Swallow The Sun - New Moon - review
Tracklist
01. These Woods Breathe Evil02. Falling World
03. Sleepless Swans
04. And Heavens Cried Blood
05. Lights On The Lake (Horror Pt. III)
06. New Moon
07. Servant Of Sorrow
08. Weight Of The Dead
A review by
KwonVerge October 17, 2010
Yes, Swallow The Sun have their influences, one of the major ones being Katatonia, yet in my humble opinion the overall ambiance and song structure with this friendly bittersweet guitar sound and the vocals of Mikko Kotamäki tend to forge a distinctive character. There's something that makes their sound recognisable from the very first spin of a single song, you know you're listening to Swallow The Sun and this is what New Moon breathes, everything this band has been after their slower and gloomiest work to date at its finest.
New Moon shines brighter than the sun and the cover artwork is utterly expressive, being an alternate moon-driven version of the monicer of the band. The album serves a warm sense of melancholy that surrounds gently the listener. "These Woods Breathe Evil" and "Falling Worlds" are enough to overwhelm you and from that moment and on you lose yourself deeper in the well-crafted melodic doom/death metal of the band, with huge amounts of caressing melody, heavier moments, outbursts in rage and slow-paced atmospheric passages, all of them blending together in utter harmony. The keyboard lines float in a devout or threatening way overshadowing the sun while the guitars paint the soundscape with scarlet and grey colours with their acoustic, melodic or heavier dance. The rhythm section pulsates the universe with the bass lines actually being there as Mikko entrances the night with his charismatic multi-expressive voice, ranging from hallucinating deep grunts to unearthly shrieks and from full of soul recites to beautiful melodic lines. In the end, you feel overburdened by the "Weight Of The Dead".
Every single composition holds a beauty of its own and Swallow The Sun prove once again that their albums work in unity, captivating both mind and soul with their fragile yet powerful aesthetic, leaning towards melody without forgetting the more dynamic essence of the band. Once again the Finnish climate did its wonder for a band that never dissapointed me, all followers of the band may proceed.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 9 |
| Songwriting: | 9 |
| Originality: | 8 |
| Production: | 9 |
Comments
Comments:
6
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Amazing album and great review as well! I was really disappointed that this album didn't even get nominated for best Gloom Album of 2009, because in my opinion, it was.
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 Posts: 1435 |
Posts: 1435
The whole album is flawless but I gotta say "...And Heavens Cried Blood" and "Lights on the Lake" are the 2 masterpieces of this album. But even so, I gotta back you up with The Morning Never Came is still their best effort. Grats on this review. Very nicely done.
---- It is humanity who must pay homage to the greatness of the Universe... not the Universe to the human narcissism. 
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Posts: 426 Written by Dark Blood on 18.10.2010 at 10:51 Love Heavens Cried Blood. Just finally getting into this album. This genre definitely requires a certain mindset for me. If I am too depressed this stuff gets almost scary to me.
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Posts: 1435 Written by Wes on 03.12.2011 at 03:43 That's so true. It's a genre that needs to be listened with careful, at the right times, and at the right state of mind. Personally I've been listening to it a lot and I've discovered some really good underrated bands lately. I bet if I was a person susceptible to depressions I wouldn't be here now. 
---- It is humanity who must pay homage to the greatness of the Universe... not the Universe to the human narcissism.
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