Agalloch - The Serpent & The Sphere - review
Agalloch - The Serpent & The Sphere - review
Tracklist
01. Birth And Death Of The Pillars Of Creation02. (Serpens Caput)
03. The Astral Dialogue
04. Dark Matter Gods
05. Celestial Effigy
06. Cor Serpentis (The Sphere)
07. Vales Beyond Dimension
08. Plateau Of The Ages
09. (Serpens Cauda)
10. Omega Serpentis [Japanese bonus]
11. Sigma Serpentis [Japanese bonus]
A review by
R'Vannith May 13, 2014
Neofolk really has no better representative within metal than Agalloch, their definitive album The Mantle being the finest of its kind, whatever that "kind" may be as it occupies something of its own explorative niche. Their texturally cohesive yet stylistically amorphous sound is one which is fundamentally situated within atmospheric and modern recreation of folk music, without directly borrowing instrumentation from any given tradition in particular. This is achieved by way of a unique and centrally formative blend of metal's darker of elements, around which the use of acoustic and natural sound effects are arranged. The combination is usually worked in wondrous ways and lends a naturally dark mood throughout their music set into an audibly tangible environment. To be truthful the core of their sound is particularly puzzling to identify, a clear mark of the band's strong sense of self-distinction external to generics; most distinctively black, doom and obviously folk metal are the primary elements under their repertoire, as well as the particularly intriguing inclusion of post-rock. No doubt that's the reason many would label their music as "post-black" metal.
Essentially how this comes to play in The Serpent & The Sphere is that this album has less to do with neofolk instrumentation and atmosphere, and more to do with the repetition and generally slow shaping riffs of doom metal, but all with an obvious melodic inflection that frequently pulls the song writing out from any structural miring which some might label as "monotonous" or, more simply, "boring". The consistently heavy delivery and tendency for repetition in the metal finds the band holding securely to this approach, above all others. Black and, to a lesser extent, folk metal inspired guitar lines slither beneath and rise above the surface and pull the all encompassing doom aesthetic along at varied pacing. The wraith-like whispers and rasps from vocalist John Haughm require extra emphasis when used alongside the heavy guitar presence and doom bolstered melodies, and his alternation of delivery accommodates the changes appropriately. The cleans have been left to the wayside of this record, which is an unfortunate occurrence as they really have accentuated the atmosphere in the past, but then atmosphere doesn't seem to be as much of a priority here as it once was.
Under "normal" circumstances the use of acoustic would be starkly obvious, and used in such a prominent way so as to construct the natural environs within which Agalloch usually create atmosphere, topped off with such natural sound effects as the flowing water or the movements of wind. There is a certain stifling to the atmospheric aspect of this record, in comparison with prior efforts, and this may present all kinds of problems to fans of this band's music. However, and any disconcertion aside, the band are clearly adamant about one thing; the avoidance of retreading old ground and thus erring their recognition as a band that continually reinvents their sound.
Perhaps to a fault. The Serpent & The Sphere is blunt in its simple yet focused approach, and arguably more reliant on style than substance. However, the substance itself is deceptively varied throughout, despite the dominating throng of doom laden riffs and melodies. The tremolos of black metal in "Vales Beyond Dimension" can take their place in a differing form to establish a stronger and more structurally obvious post-metal presence in the midsection of the following "Plateau Of The Ages", a repetitious affair overlaid with that same blanket of doom. On the other hand, you've got the staggeringly more direct and doom breaching velocity of "The Astral Dialogue" which strikes with meteoric impact, or the bass churned "Dark Matter Gods" with appropriately acquired folk rhythmic drums.
One feature which is particularly relevant but not immediately obvious is the bass work. The well placed bass finds its way effectively within the mix, sounding audible yet buried and granting grit to the generally melodic song structures. The three shorter pieces titled "(Serpens Caput)," "Cor Serpentis (The Sphere)" and "(Serpens Cauda)," are acoustic works performed and written by folk guitarist Nathanaël Larochette, and are used as moments of clear contrast in their arrangement amongst the riff based delivery of the majority of the album.
The acoustic rarely surfaces noticeably elsewhere, save in "The Astral Dialogue" or in some heightening strums in the introductory ascension to the midsection of "Plateau Of The Ages." An Agalloch characteristic is the interspersing of said acoustic, which doesn't occur here as the tracks are distinctively differentiated between those of meatier riff driven packages and the album's three acoustic pieces. As a result there is less to this album than usual that can be called neofolk or, indeed, folk metal.
The atmosphere Agalloch have created with The Serpent & The Sphere is a rather different one. It's not nearly as immersive as you would expect, and comes across as second best to the metallic drive and heavy direction which dominates the record. The theme is indicative of the change; Agalloch have harnessed particular elements of their sound and projected them in a familiar yet distinctly forward way. This album adds yet another unique representation of their sound to their varied discography.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 8 |
| Songwriting: | 8 |
| Originality: | 8 |
| Production: | 9 |
Comments
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Posts: 3554
Really damn good review. I don't necessarily agree with all of it (I seem to love this album quite a bit more than you), but you pretty much explained it perfectly. Nicely done
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Lot of words here dude! But in depth and to the point, as usual  I have yet to listen to it in full, got about halfway through the other day before I had to run errands, but from what I heard so far, it's a bit of a love/hate relationship, I'd probably give it a 7 for the moment. Indeed, the music does feel more heavy and monotonous, and that goes a long way towards (as you suggested) diminishing the more atmospheric, all-encompassing sound that's become their trademark. I appreciate the band for consistently re-inventing themselves, but one of the biggest things that's making it hard for me to enjoy this is the lack of clean vocals, and those whispers just don't really capture the power of delivery that The Mantle and Ashes Against The Grain tracks had. Guess the best way to enjoy this one is to just try to go into it without any set expectations. I've learned that doing so is a good way to piss yourself off with bands that are always changing their sound.
---- I am the Magician and the Exorcist. I am the axle of the wheel, and the cube in the circle. “Come unto me” is a foolish word: for it is I that go. ~ II. VII
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 Posts: 3099 |
Posts: 3099
Thanks for the kind words guys. Written by Auntie Sahar on 13.05.2014 at 16:50 I think I did rant on a bit, but hopefully it gets my point across.  And I'd agree, it's always a good thing to minimise expectations, and just let the music do its work, for better or worse. 
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 Posts: 7948 |
Posts: 7948
Good review. Will be checking out disc soon.
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Posts: 3104  |
Posts: 3104
Very good review, albeit a bit on the long side. As I already said multiple times, this album is a slight disappointment to me, as I expected a masterpiece like Ashes Against the Grain and The Mantle. Oh, and I incline to agree with your review score, more or less. The fact that this album is much less atmospheric than their previous albums, as well as the lack of clean vocals, are things I dislike about it. The immersive atmosphere that they're known for isn't really present here. Or maybe it is, but it isn't sucking me in like AAtG and The Mantle do. It all sounds a bit more monotonous and heavy (like Che already said). Then again, only 6 spins so far, so will be spinning it quite a few times to judge it properly.
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Posts: 40071
Sorry but this is not a good review since it is way too long. 500 words max it should have been. And that would have sufficed.
---- 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: 21306
All sarcasm aside, I actually agree with Marcel. I don't think it's a bad review, but it's almost twice as long as the maximum word length. I don't even think Rozz managed that.  But you did manage to describe the album very well. I haven't listened to it yet but I feel like I know exactly what I'm in for based on your review.
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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Posts: 1860  |
Posts: 1860
What i love about Reviews is that its someones Genuine opinions and Thoughts. Nice review i just ordered this last night. I forgot all about this release. Im hoping for something stronger this time around
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Posts: 25  |
Posts: 25
Well....Agalloch has become one of my favorite bands over the last few years, I look forward to their new material, they are one of the few bands I can think of that haven't created material I 'didn't' like. That's rare...even some of my lifelong favorites like King Diamond and Megadeth have produced material that makes me cringe. I enjoy all Agalloch's material and this album is no different. A lot of people (apparently) didn't enjoy Faustian Echoes, but I thought it too was excellent. I think if you like Agalloch's material, you'll appreciate this release. I'm glad we live in Agallochean times.....
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 Posts: 1465 |
Posts: 1465
Review was much too long, but appreciate it anyway.
---- The sun shines over The Fool...
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 Posts: 1703 |
Posts: 1703
I agree on the length being a bit long but it was fun to read and defined the album well. Shows good appreciation for the music and language as well. The album is a good one...
---- Coldgrits
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Posts: 6213 Written by Ace Frawley on 15.05.2014 at 05:59 Do you avoid certain books because they're too long?
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Posts: 1465 Written by Daniell on 15.05.2014 at 15:02 Yes, yes I do.
---- The sun shines over The Fool...
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Posts: 6213 Written by Ace Frawley on 16.05.2014 at 13:16 Seriously? I feel for you.
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Posts: 1342
Great review, I - for one - didn't mind the length at all. It's an Agalloch album, lots to talk about. I respect that. Congrats on a 100 reviews by the way. Keep writing 
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Posts: 1465 Written by Daniell on 16.05.2014 at 14:09 Yep, but don't feel sorry for me mate. I've got a very busy life. Reading big books isn't something I have time for with a 2 1/2 year old who demands a lot of attention and a busy job. I used to have much more time when I was younger to indulge my reading. I still read every day though.
---- The sun shines over The Fool...
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Posts: 3104 Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 14.05.2014 at 01:57 It is too long, but it describes the album very well and it's well-written. So it's still a good review I'd say. I do get the 500 max words "rule", but would you say there's also a minimum amount of words for a review? I've seen some of your reviews for example (Lords of Metal), which are pretty short usually. Don't get me wrong, I like shorter reviews more than longer ones in general, I'm just wondering if there's a rule of 100 words minimum per review or something. Btw, I was curious and actually counted the words for one review of yours (I deliberately picked a very short one ) and it was a little above 100 words, hence why I came up with that amount.
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Posts: 3104 |
Posts: 3104 Written by [user id=4365] on 17.05.2014 at 17:02 Ah I see. Thanks for clearing that up. That rule definitely doesn't apply to reviews on Lords of Metal, that's for sure. I'm pretty sure most of Marcel's (and Pim's, from Officium Triste) are under 250 words. But reading short reviews is something I'd do more easily than the longer ones, so for me it's actually a good thing most of the time. Then again, longer reviews are usually more detailed than the short ones.
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Posts: 3104 Written by [user id=4365] on 17.05.2014 at 17:08 I only read reviews of albums that I'm really interested in, and even then not always, so in reality I don't often read reviews. This one was an exception because this album was one of my most anticipated releases.
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| !J.O.O.E.!
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Posts: 3104 Written by [user id=4365] on 17.05.2014 at 17:16 That's odd considering one of MS's purposes is to discuss music...
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Posts: 3104 Written by [user id=4365] on 17.05.2014 at 17:22 Yeah, that makes sense. The statement of you not being interested in other people's opinions just sounded strange, but I get that you're not interested in reviews.
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Posts: 7948 Written by Erik M. on 17.05.2014 at 17:24 I think Joe is little bit ignorant there. His post came out be bit childish. Anyway, for me any kind of (intresting)discsussion anywhere becomes a good idea exchange and actual discussion. You don't need to nitpick any place for that. Be it review, Article, Forums, Facebook, hell even on Twitter sometimes or even any verbal volleys. Saying you don't give a damn about someone's reviews is fine but you can't just knock it off revieww section from forums. Forums has their own taste.
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