Sigh - Graveward review
| Band: | Sigh |
| Album: | Graveward |
| Style: | Avantgarde metal, Black metal |
| Release date: | April 13, 2015 |
| A review by: | ScreamingSteelUS |
01. Kaedit Nos Pestis [feat. Kelly Simonz]
02. Graveward
03. The Tombfiller [feat. Kelly Simonz]
04. The Forlorn
05. The Molesters Of My Soul
06. Out Of The Grave [feat. Matt Heafy]
07. The Trial By The Dead
08. The Casketburner [feat. Frédéric Leclercq]
09. A Messenger From Tomorrow [feat. Metatron & Niklas Kvarforth]
1 - The Message
2 - Foreboding
3 - Doomsday
10. Dwellers In A Dream [feat. Kelly Simonz & Sakis Tolis]
11. Graveward Suit [Japanese bonus]
12. The Tombfiller [Alternate guitar solo version] [Japanese bonus]
13. The Forlorn [Europe/US original version] [Japanese bonus]
14. The Molesters Of My Soul [Alternate version] [Japanese bonus]
15. Out Of The Grave [Previously unreleased demo version] [Japanese bonus]
16. Dwellers In Dream [Alternate guitar solo version] [Japanese bonus]
Hey, Wintersun. Listen up. You want to know how to make a proper, full-length album with hundreds upon hundreds of tracks over ten songs in only three years without constantly bitching about not having your own private studio/living space/jacuzzi, AND while still challenging both yourself and your fans with a multifarious jewel of avant-garde perfection? Take note, because Sigh have that totally locked down.
From the first brazen assault of guitar solos in "Kaedit Nos Pestis," performed by special guest Kelly Simonz, Graveward sets a frenetic pace and a very high bar. Guitarist You Oshima, replacing Shinichi Ishikawa, steps into his role with electrifying speed and energy, immediately establishing Graveward as one of the most intense and vibrant albums in Sigh's discography and bringing the guitar a bit further to the front than usual. I really liked In Somniphobia, and I am loathe to speak to its detriment, but Graveward sounds much livelier and more colorful - like something trapped in between Imaginary Sonicscape and Hangman's Hymn: Musikalische Exequien. It features heavy orchestration: piercing, staccato Psycho strings and deep, foreboding, Reapers-have-just-entered-the-star-system brass, complemented by fantastic guitar work from Oshima, Simonz, and another guest, DragonForce's Frédéric Leclercq. What band of twisted madmen puts those guys alongside Trivium's Matt Heafy, Shining's Niklas Kvarforth, Rotting Christ's Sakis Tolis, and the enigmatic Metatron all together on one album? The same bunch of magnificent bastards who wrote "Slaughtergarden Suite" and "Hail Horror Hail," that's who.
All this without addressing the contributions of Dr. Mikannibal, whose ever-increasing presence does Sigh no end of favors. Maybe I'm biased as a fellow saxophonist (technically speaking, anyway), but I believe that they have only become stronger as a band since her addition, and the good doctor's plentiful vocal parts on this album overflow with flavor and constitution. With the new addition of the talented Oshima, Sigh are sounding better than ever - the same eerie, thoroughly unorthodox atmosphere and adventurous songwriting, but with a surge of adrenaline.
Graveward has so many layers it would be impossible to uncover them all before its successor comes out, and it feels utterly absurd trying to describe it in anything less than a dictionary-sized analysis - which I guess is where that "dancing about architecture" thing kicks in. Sigh defies description like few other bands, dumping so many genres into one work of art. In any one song, the action moves swiftly between disconcerting, funky, anguished, uplifting, mystifying, jazzy, horrific, and classically transcendent. Alien keyboards, purely haunting vocals, stuttering electronics, bombastic symphonies, and a creeping, metallic edge all melt together into a fantastic experimental wonderland. "A Messenger From Tomorrow" is one of the greatest epics Sigh have ever unleashed, and "Out Of The Grave" manages to be incredibly catchy amongst the thunderous layers of deathly thrashing. Indeed, every song is a highlight, and it almost seems unfair to single out a few individual ones.
Sigh are truly masters of their own sound. Never could they be mistaken for anyone else, nor could they fail to deliver an album fascinating for its density alone. Listening to Sigh is the aural equivalent of what would happen if The Teenage Mutant Ninja Ju-on took place on the ship from Alien, and the future ghost of John Carpenter fused with Bach's evil cyborg twin directed it.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 10 |
| Songwriting: | 10 |
| Originality: | 10 |
| Production: | 8 |
 | Written on 26.04.2015 by I'm the reviewer, and that means my opinion is correct. |
Comments
Comments: 28
Visited by: 474 users
| Shmyt Posts: 84  |
Quite the glowing review, I shall give them a listen; I haven't listened to much out of Japan in a while.
Loading...
|
| PocketMetal Posts: 750 |
|
| Nunzie 69 Posts: 38 |
|
| DahliaRock Posts: 153  |
All my worries have been put to rest after the initial listen... Sigh still rocks my socks off. Has a nice little Imaginary Sonicscape-y madness aura that surrounds each song, the typical Sigh sound we have gotten used to especially in the last few albums (unlike the cleanliness of HH) yet oh so fresh!
Loading...
|
| LasseMomme Posts: 20 |
|
| paragraph7 Posts: 38 |
|
| Ras Posts: 9 |
|
| K✞ulu Seeker of Truth Posts: 2574  |
10 to everything but production. I have to listen to this. I have been procrastinating all these years, but I will not ignore this.
---- Savor what you feel and what you see Things that may not seem important now But may be tomorrow R.I.P. Chuck Schuldiner Satan was a Backstreet Boy
Loading...
|
| flightoficarus Stamp Tramp Posts: 1118  |
Great album.
---- Daily underground metal recommendations at Metal Trenches. Watch metal content on the Metal Trenches YouTube Channel.
Loading...
|
| Vombatus Potorro Posts: 2397  |
Always good to see some Jari bashing  On topic, this review reminds me that I should really get to do a deep Sigh investigation. I'm always so lazy to listen through all their stuff, limiting myself to random songs here and there.
Loading...
|
| Karlabos Posts: 5771  |
Written by Vombatus on 26.04.2015 at 23:54 Listen to Imaginary Sonicscape. The whole thing. If this doesn't get you into Sigh nothing will =p
---- "Aah! The cat turned into a cat!" - Reimu Hakurei
Loading...
|
| Lethrokai Posts: 507  |
Written by Karlabos on 27.04.2015 at 01:03 I dunno... Imaginary Soniscape was a fine album for me, but it was In Somniphobia that really sold me on the band personally.
---- Sometimes you just need to roll the dice and look away.
Loading...
|
| ScreamingSteelUS Editor-in-Chief Admin Posts: 6094  |
Written by Lethrokai on 27.04.2015 at 03:01 I started with Scorn Defeat, then the Gallows Gallery reissue. I definitely find Imaginary Sonicscape their best work, but the thing about Sigh is that every album, and even every song, has its own distinct feeling, style, and atmosphere. No two are alike. It's great as a fan, but it means that sometimes there isn't any clear inroad without just listening to a lot of their music, so it can make it a bit complicated to get into. In Somniphobia might be as good a place as any to start, but I think it definitely takes at least a couple of albums to really get a sense of how you feel about them.
---- "Earth is small and I hate it" - Lum Invader I'm the Agent of Steel.
Loading...
|
| M C Vice ex-polydactyl Posts: 3420  |
Written by Lethrokai on 27.04.2015 at 03:01 Any of the 'I' albums. They're the standout from each album-name cycle. Or Hangman's Hymn. Hopefully this one is better than their last 'G' album.
---- "I'm here to nunchuck and not wear helmets. And I'm all out of helmets." "I'll fight you on one condition. That you lower your nipples." " 'Tis a lie! Thy backside is whole and ungobbled, thou ungrateful whelp!"
Loading...
|
| Vombatus Potorro Posts: 2397 |
Written by Karlabos on 27.04.2015 at 01:03 I remember listening that album long ago, and loving A Sunset Song, but never went back. Listening to it now and it's great, I knew I had to like Sigh but never found the moment to dedicate them time.
Loading...
|
| toxx Supreme being Posts: 390  |
Loading...
|
| ColdRail Posts: 73  |
Written by Lethrokai on 27.04.2015 at 03:01 Yeah I also got into them with 'In Somniphobia', but since I used to listen Unexpect before Sigh, I think it was easier for me to get into the band, and this album keep proving that they are stronger than ever.
Loading...
|
| Auntie Sahar Drone Empress Posts: 5989  |
Fucking LOVE this band. Haven't gotten on this one yet, but your review just reminds me that I need to even more so. By the way, how's that track with Metatron?
---- 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
Loading...
|
| ScreamingSteelUS Editor-in-Chief Admin Posts: 6094 |
Written by Auntie Sahar on 27.04.2015 at 18:37 Very creepy, plodding, and psychedelic. Quite Meads-y, actually, with a fantastically dramatic build-up in the last minute or so. It's competing for one of my favorite Sigh songs, although to be honest Metatron's part is really small, more for brief atmospheric effect than a blatant guest spot, I'd say; if I had one complaint about this album, it's that it needs more Metatron.
---- "Earth is small and I hate it" - Lum Invader I'm the Agent of Steel.
Loading...
|
| Auntie Sahar Drone Empress Posts: 5989 |
Written by ScreamingSteelUS on 27.04.2015 at 18:54 Everything needs more Metatron  Sounds pretty ace, though. By the way, is there some issue with the release date for this? Here it says April 18, but the Candlelight Bandcamp says May 5, and I can't find a full stream for it 
---- 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
Loading...
|
| ScreamingSteelUS Editor-in-Chief Admin Posts: 6094 |
Written by Auntie Sahar on 27.04.2015 at 19:46 April 13th is the European release date and May 5th is the American release date, which seems like a bit more dramatic a gap than usual. Vinyl release won't be for a few months, apparently. Before I got the full download, I only found "Out of the Grave" streaming on the Candlelight USA Bandcamp and about half the album on the UK Bandcamp, although I believe it's available in full on Spotify.
---- "Earth is small and I hate it" - Lum Invader I'm the Agent of Steel.
Loading...
|
| Auntie Sahar Drone Empress Posts: 5989 |
Written by ScreamingSteelUS on 27.04.2015 at 19:59 It's up on Youtube, good enough for me for now. Pretty good so far, although the vocals come off as really alternative rock-ish. Not a bad thing, but I don't really remember them sounding much like that before... might have to go back and give the past few albums some re-spins now.
---- 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
Loading...
|
| SoUnDs LiKe PoP Posts: 1060 |
|
| ScreamingSteelUS Editor-in-Chief Admin Posts: 6094 |
Written by Ras on 26.04.2015 at 15:31 Wow, I was actually so stunned that I forgot to acknowledge this until now. I'm sincerely flattered.
---- "Earth is small and I hate it" - Lum Invader I'm the Agent of Steel.
Loading...
|
| barnesy Posts: 133  |
This is a testament to prove wrong the age old adage- "it's all been done before". Sigh has taken that whole philosophy, whipped it with a bull whip, pissed on it's head, and lofted it off a cliff. Good work!
Loading...
|
| ErikBraun Posts: 15 |
|
| Introspekrieg Totemic Lust Elite Posts: 2749  |
FINALLY! A return of the wackiness that made Imaginary Sonicscape so great.
Loading...
|
| Dream Taster The Enemy Within Staff Posts: 1337  |
Fantastic review! Another Sigh album I need to listen to. I have been a fan of their unpredictable albums for a long long time. 
Loading...
|
Hits total: 8407 | This month: 1