Raphael Weinroth-Browne - Lifeblood - review
Raphael Weinroth-Browne - Lifeblood - review
Album
Lifeblood Release date
October 03, 2025 Tracklist
01. Lifeblood02. Possession
03. Ophidian
04. Pyre
05. Labyrinthine
06. Nethereal
07. Winterlight
08. The Glimmering
A review by
tominator November 13, 2025
I love Worlds Within. Actually, no, scratch that. I like Worlds Within, I love Worlds Within Live. “Isn’t that basically the same thing”, I hear you wondering.
Not quite, although truth be told, I thought so too for a long time. My first Raphael Weinroth-Browne experience was Worlds Within Live, and like I mentioned earlier I love that album. I naturally assumed that Worlds Within would basically be just as good, given that it’s the same tracks recorded in studio.
Turns out I was wrong in that assumption; by listening to the studio recording, you’re losing out on a lot of atmosphere. That is mainly due to the excessive reverb that’s present on it. The live version alleviates that problem, and fully realises the overall melancholic feeling that is aimed for.
Why did I write this long ass section? Well, because I think Lifeblood drastically improves the recording quality of the previous studio record. It sounds a lot more natural and balanced, and as a result, the whole soundscape gets the chance to have a lot more nuance in it. This immediately jumps out the most when comparing both albums; it truly is a night and day difference.
Another thing that’s quite noticeable is the more prominent aggressive touches at times, especially in the first half of the album. You already get a bit of a sense of that with the opening/title track, but the next two songs, “Possession” and “Ophidian”, certainly offer that extra aggressive twist. The latter of the two aforementioned tracks might actually be my personal favourite on Lifeblood; it’s as if light and darkness are at each other's throat throughout its running time, and is incredibly compelling from start to finish.
What is carried over from the previous album is the overall foreboding and melancholic feel. This in and of itself would already be enough to make an interesting listening experience, but what I really like about Raphael Weinroth-Browne’s compositions is the playfulness he adds to them. It’s wandering innocence in a dark and lonely forest personified.
Variety is also on offer here, and more so than on the previous album. This is partially because of certain aspects I mentioned earlier, like the addition of more aggressive elements, as well as the better production, but also in the compositions themselves. Take the song aptly named “Labyrinthine”, for instance; It’s a whole journey with quite a few twists and turns, and feels very different from the previously mentioned “Ophidian”, which has a focus on duality for its composition. Basically put, the songs on Lifeblood feel like they are each their own unique piece, whereas on Worlds Within (and of course also Worlds Within Live) the songs tend to blend into each other more.
I know that “variety” has basically become my middle name at this point, because I tend to blabber about it a lot in my reviews. Therefore, given all the praise (and the high score I have given), you would expect me to say that I like Lifeblood even more than Worlds Within. Yes, I do. Do I like it more than Worlds Within Live, though? No, I don’t think so. And that’s where my usual idea of having variety is better gets flipped like a table at a bingo night gone wrong. I like the variety of Lifeblood, but I love how the compositions of Worlds Within form one cohesive and very compelling journey. If you listen to the songs on their own, I think Lifeblood has the advantage. However, I’m reviewing the full album experience, and that’s where Worlds Within shines. It just suffers a ton from the underwhelming production, which is alleviated by the live version.
To conclude, if my ramblings should tell you anything, it’s that you should definitely give Lifeblood a listen and while you are at it, give Worlds Within Live one also. They are truly great experiences.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 10 |
| Songwriting: | 9 |
| Originality: | 9 |
| Production: | 9 |
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