Darkest Era - Wither On The Vine - review
Darkest Era - Wither On The Vine - review
Tracklist
01. One Thousand Years Of Night02. Floodlands
03. A Path Made Of Roots
04. Tithonus
05. The Collapse
06. With Tragedy In Our Blood
07. The Ashen Plague
08. Wither On The Vine
A review by
AndyMetalFreak October 31, 2022
So eight years have passed since Darkest Era presented us with their album Severance, and Wither On The Vine continues very much with the same trend with which the band left off, with powerful and emotive songwriting and epic doom structures, along with a unique blend of genres and mixed styles varying from Irish folk to traditional doom and blackened heavy metal. All of these were to some degree also present on their previous efforts; however, Wither On The Vine is somewhat lighter and much more melancholic at times than its predecessors. Nevertheless, I should add that it's still undeniably powerful, as they once again manage to create that deep dark sorrowful atmosphere rich in enchanting melodies that they have become renowned for.
There's certainly a number of fascinating influences behind this impressive structure, in which you will hear certain aspects from bands such as Ereb Altor, Winterfylleth, Katatonia and even Iron Maiden. Still, one of the main influences is undoubtedly from their Southern Irish neighbours Primordial, particularly on the tracks "Collapse" and the opener "One Thousand Years Of Night", with those great galloping riffs, blackened guitar sounds and Irish folk melodies. If that isn't enough, then just listen to those passionate and emotional vocals by Krum, as clearly the sound has a very strong resemblance to Primordial’s Nemtheanga; that is, until his vocals hover into doom mode, at which point he differentiates into a much more despaired and sorrowful style, sounding much like that of Aaron Stainthorpe from My Dying Bride.
While I must say I'm impressed overall with what Darkest Era have achieved here, there are still several moments on this album that really stood out for me above all. First of these is the song "Collapse" and its various styles, including doom, heavy metal and folk; it's like listening to a combination of the aforementioned Katatonia, Iron Maiden and Primordial. Secondly, the song "With Tragedy In Our Blood", for me, is the catchiest and most memorable song on the album, mainly due to the strong traditional heavy metal influence underlying its riffs and catchy songwriting, which again to me scream out "Iron Maiden".
If there's one thing for sure, it's that Wither On The Vine is certainly not like any other doom metal album you'll hear this year, not in the slightest in fact, and with the intriguing multiple genre infusions and blending of styles never ceasing to amaze, it certainly will be one of the most memorable albums come the end of the year.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 8 |
| Songwriting: | 9 |
| Originality: | 8 |
| Production: | 8 |
Written on 31.10.2022 by
Written on 31.10.2022 by
An honest review that you don't necessarily have to agree with. Comments
Comments:
13
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 Posts: 8263 |
Posts: 8263
Thanks for reviewing my album of the year, Andy. I agree on the standout tracks being "Collapse" and "With Tragedy In Our Blood", but the whole album is simply phenomenal. I mean, "Floodlands"? The title track? Wow. I always listen to it from beginning to end. Guitar-gasmic melodies and stunning vocal harmonies. Krum is so gifted; it is just unfair for all the others.
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Posts: 6676 Written by nikarg on 01.11.2022 at 11:24 I have to say it's up there with one of my favourites this year too, and it seems to get better with each listen aswel, there are so many moments to enjoy on this album.
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 Posts: 64484 |
Posts: 64484
Another good reviev whit genre mixture band, each song has different structure, song writing, I like it and cold, chily British mood there.
---- I stand whit Ukraine and Israel. They have right to defend own citizens. Stormtroopers of Death - "Speak English or Die"  I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
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Posts: 6676 Written by Bad English on 01.11.2022 at 15:28 Thanks  Youe right this album definitely has that dark and gloomy British mood about it 
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Posts: 64484 Written by AndyMetalFreak on 01.11.2022 at 15:32 I call it nordic in own way we're equal in some way being labeled northen countries and half of Ulster has germanic roots as you
---- I stand whit Ukraine and Israel. They have right to defend own citizens. Stormtroopers of Death - "Speak English or Die" I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
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Posts: 410  |
Posts: 410
Agreed, great album!
---- "Nullum unquam exstitit magnum igenium sine aliqua dementia [there was never great genius without some madness]." Best of Metal A-Z: http://metalstorm.net/users/lists.php?user_id=158339
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Posts: 1524  |
Posts: 1524
Maybe because of the different styles it does not come across as a common doom album, i feel it lighter and "merrier" as the usual dose of crushing depressive doomisms...
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Posts: 6676 Written by DarkWingedSoul on 20.11.2022 at 13:56 Your right by saying it's not a common doom metal album, in fact I find it hard to pinpoint a definite genre for this. Although there's a slight doom element to it I also find there to be elements of folk and heavy metal amongst other genres. So a very unique album indeed I say.
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Posts: 5654 Written by AndyMetalFreak on 20.11.2022 at 15:00 A lot of times, albums hard to pin point are some of the most interesting.
---- I thought the two primary purposes for the internet were cat memes and overreactions.
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Posts: 6676 Written by John_Doe on 20.11.2022 at 15:02 Yeah I can agree 
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I've been reminiscing back through some of 2022's stand-out releases, and I must say this release seems to be one that stand-outs most, I always enjoyed listening to it last year but somehow it sounds even better now. A lot of good tracks on here, like the one's I've pointed out "The Collapse", and "With Tragedy In Our Blood", but it's "A Path Made Of Roots" that has become one of my favorite tracks in recent years.
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