Weakling - Dead As Dreams - review
Weakling - Dead As Dreams - review
Tracklist
01. Cut Their Grain And Place Fire Therein02. Dead As Dreams
03. This Entire Fucking Battlefield
04. No One Can Be Called As A Man While He'll Die
05. Disasters In The Sun
A review by
Lucas March 08, 2010
Weakling's main characteristic is their frequent juxtaposing of galloping and droning riffs. They run off into a blood-hungry battlefield-riff just as easy as they dwell in drawn-out multi-layered drones. But there's more.
Starting off with "Cut Their Grain And Place Fire Therein", with its ten-minutes the shortest track on the album, you immediately know you're in for a treat. The distortion is raw and ravished, the production likewise and the mood is set. A lead guitar gradually becomes more prominent until it evolves into an ugly, dirty solo. The title track is next and - clocking in at twenty minutes - the longest track. It starts off with a gray, hazily-distorted intro, which is surprisingly beautiful after the rage and ugliness of the opener. It quickly morphs back into pure hatred again, though, only allowing the listener a quick breath. And we continue this way - intense Black metal alternated by sections of beauty and / or calmness. The great thing about Weakling is that the raging Black metal still sounds beautiful and the calm parts still sound bleak and wretched.
My only point of criticism focuses on the vocals. John Gossards screeches are definitely not among the best the genre has to offer. Often yelling rather than screaming, he sounds weak and occasionally even awful. But looking at it from a different angle, he does fit with the general concept and music of Weakling. It'll just take a while to get used to them.
Dead As Dreams is an incredibly varied release which never drags during the entire seventy-five minutes. They go from droning to raw and wild to epic to heart-wrenching in a matter of moments. Although it has the sound of a Second Wave worshipper, it is actually quite progressive at heart. Weakling's Dead As Dreams is a captivating album and a must-check for the seasoned Black metal fan. It's one of those albums you have to hear while sitting in a comfy chair, in the dark, with full volume. Then you'll know what it is like to be dead but dreaming...
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 9 |
| Songwriting: | 10 |
| Originality: | 8 |
| Production: | 8 |
Comments
Comments:
16
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 Posts: 21306 |
Posts: 21306
How did I ever miss this? I looked into their MySpace and listened to a few tracks... This is what black metal should be. As for the vocals, I think they fit the music perfectly as they come off very "dirty" or "rough", which really benefits the more eerie atmospheric sections. A 9.0 indeed. I have no ways or means to actually obtain the album, so I guess I'll have to keep it in good memory. 
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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Posts: 15358
It's a great album that can at least be obtained virtually if not physically. nice work with the review.
---- get the fuck off my lawn. Beer Bug Virus Spotify Playlist crafted by Nikarg and I. Feel free to tune in and add some pertinent metal tunes!
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| !J.O.O.E.!
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Posts: 711
Classic BM album, the musicianship on this and the mood it creates is astounding, overwhelmingly suffocating. As for the vocals, I read in some interview that they were actually looking for a vocalist before recording but they never actually found one so Gossard was pushed into a corner and didn't have any other choice than doing the vocals himself. But now that i got used to his vocals I can't imagine it otherwise it would ruin the overall image imo. Great review btw 
---- Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone.
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Posts: 13427
Hey hey, let's not attack each other on taste here. Although a one-word comment IS spam and that IS forbidding. Even if the one word is 'fantastic' or 'amazing'.  So please, elaborate.
---- SLUDGE. DOOM. DEATH. Wait, what?  "The reason I'm running for president is because I can't be Bruce Springsteen." - Barack Obama
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 Posts: 1703 |
Posts: 1703
I never had a problem with the vocals on this. They fit perfectly to the music, very sorrowful and full of lament and anguish. Great CD I'm glad I was able to get a hard copy.
---- Coldgrits
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 Posts: 9568 |
Posts: 9568 Written by [user id=35732] on 21.04.2010 at 19:15 Don't understand this at all. This is probably one of the best black metal albums around. Please, explain yourself.
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| !J.O.O.E.!
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Posts: 18612 Written by [user id=4365] on 10.11.2012 at 02:05 Same... I don't get my panties wet over it but when I heard it the first time the first thing I thought it's how incredibly solid this is. So far from weak.
---- Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29 Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
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Posts: 40071 Written by [user id=35732] on 10.11.2012 at 15:12 an answer such as this is not allowed. If you post pictures as an answer words have to accompany it in a meaningful manner. Just " Here's my explanation" and then posting cryptic and vague pcitures does not consitute a proper answer on this forum.
---- 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: 9568 |
Posts: 9568
^^Okay...? Really wish i could find this on Cd too, but fat chance of that happening.
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| mz
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| J. N.
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