Eeriness - A Life Beyond The Shades Of Time review
| Band: | Eeriness |
| Album: | A Life Beyond The Shades Of Time |
| Style: | Gothic metal |
| Release date: | June 2003 |
| Guest review by: | Bas |
01. November - Thy Weakness
02. The Unbounded Misfortune
03. Grotesque Misery
04. Dead Souls Embrace
05. Silent Voices
06. Only The Rain
07. Lay Down
08. Graveyard Birds
09. Sun And Moon Eclipse
Sometimes the Swiss underground scene really manages to impress me. Switzerland really does have more to offer than Krokus, Samael and Celtic Frost. Eeriness is the perfect example. The seven members, including a soprano and a cello, manage to make some extremely atmospheric and terrifically catchy gothic metal. I think I can describe them by saying: imagine Tristania and add a few spoonfuls (or rather kettlefuls?) of atmosphere, voila, Eeriness.
In the same way as Tristania, Eeriness merge the beauty of a female opera singer's voice with the rough aesthetics of a growler. Growler might be the wrong word here though; it's somewhere in between speaking and grunting. Or maybe it's loud talking in a very hoarse whisper? Whatever you want to call it, the voice of Philipp Gnos is really something you have to get used to. But when you got used to it and are able to fully appreciate it, then you'll recognize that it perfectly combines with the dark beauty of the music.
Generally the songs are kept quite simple, but they are very catchy. The one instrument that stands out are the keyboards, there are a few really great keyboard sections scattered throughout the CD, yet most of the time the music doesn't allow you to discern one instrument from the other in terms of quality; it forms a whole, and that is it's strength. The cello, despite being, like I said, mainly a part of the whole, really helps in adding depth to the music.
To be honest though; this really isn't an album I can listen to for hours. It's just too simple for that structure-wise. However I absolutely love to listen to this while reading dark literature a la Lovecraft and Edgar Allen Poe. I suppose that is the true strength of this album: to create an eerie atmosphere. And in this Eeriness have exceeded.
PS: The cover art of Life Beyond The Shades Of Time is my favourite cover art ever. A great thumb up here!
And don't forget to check out Rozz's review of Eeriness' new album Paths, here.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 7 |
| Songwriting: | 9 |
| Originality: | 7 |
| Production: | 7 |
Written by Bas | 12.05.2007
Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
Rating:
8.0
8.0
|
Rating: 8.0 |
Gothic Metal from Switzerland, to be honest, I don't remember hearing too much bands from that part of the world, so I was surprised when I found that Eeriness were hailing from those lands. The band have 7 members, among those are a cello player, keyboards, and both male and female vocals, this is their debut album after 2 demos, and they're signed to Shark records, those are the facts, well enough of this, let's go into the music. Read more ›› |
Comments
Comments: 1
Visited by: 6 users
| Bararey Winter is Coming Elite Posts: 3139  |
Well yes the album is pretty good, not the best out there, the album cover is great as well. I really like the track Only the Rain, it is one of may favorite songs.
---- "Rhaegar fought valiantly, Rhaegar fought nobly, Rhaegar fought honorably. And Rhaegar died." Ser Jorah Mormont
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