Band:	Taak
Album:	Koerapööriöö
Style:	Doom metal
Release date:	2006
A review by:	destroyah

01. Korjusepäev
02. Merevaik
03. Õiglane Jaak
04. Punane Madu
05. Tähist Ja Tolmust
06. Habemega Nali
07. Trots
08. Öö
09. Ööliblikas
10. Hüljatu
11. Poeg On Pätt

A short while ago I talked about Nitrous' début album "Dominant Force" and mentioned that their vocalist also sings in Taak. Well, this is it. Personally I find this group to be much more fitting for Mart Kalvet's preaching and howling voice. Taak plays old school riff-based Heavy/Doom metal with heavy keyboard overlays.

I'm going to say straight away that these guys pose a considerable threat to muscles in your neck region and never fail to deliver on stage. On the record however the results may vary and that is largely due to the production. No, it's not bad, but I think they should've thought twice before sealing the deal - the guitars sound awfully dry and often lose their edge, something you definitely need to avoid when playing this particular style. In this album's case I can't help thinking how one or another riff would have felt like had it been more prominent, more clean. Also there's one more thing that the listener might find odd - the keyboards play an important role on "Koerapööriöö" and their prominence might discourage some people. But it's only a matter of taste and I myself think that the organic works give this album kind of a cool retro vibe.

There's one more specific detail that disappointed me. Taak was formerly known as Dawn of Gehenna, and the last release bearing that name was "The Night Dog Sessions" with three out of it's five tracks also featuring on "Koerapööriöö". Sadly the two tracks left out of the initial debut LP were the ones I particularly enjoyed. Those two outsiders are in my opinion the coolest songs Taak has conceived, not to mention they could've contributed a lot to "Koerapööriöö" as far as the variety of the album is concerned.

By now you must be feeling somewhat reluctant to have anything to do with Taak, let alone buy their album. I apologize for my little frenzy. The truth is, production issues aside, the entire package rocks your socks. "Punane Madu" ("The Red Serpent") for example is a must have for any doom fan, the main riff will, and I stress - will haunt you like a rabid ghost on drugs (a type of ghost that is very haunting, in case you didn't know). And I feel I must continue on the postmortem-allegory - "Tähist ja Tolmust" ("Of Stars and Dust") strikes an image of damned kings, dignified reminders of majestic ages - all that in your personal audio-system. There's a couple of faster tracks here as well but personally I'd rather not shift the focus on them as the slower pieces are the ones to take the prize.

The bottom line is that Taak is surely a force to be reckoned with, especially if you're a fan of the genre and if you dig the slightly Glenn Danzig-ish vocals. All the members handle their instruments with excellence and the result is compelling and professional. The lyrics of "Koerapööriöö" are exceptionally in Estonian and the entire band seems to focus on the Estonian market but should you come across this album I'd recommend you to try it.