Angry Metal Guy

Unleashed // As Yggdrasil Trembles
Rating: 3.0/5.0 — The Manowar of Death Metal strikes again!
Label: Nuclear Blast (EU | US)
Websites: unleashed.se | myspace.com/unleashed
Release Dates: EU: 19.03.2010 | 03.19.2010

Unleashed is not without their appeal. They’ve been around for a couple decades now, putting out their first record Where No Life Dwells in 1991, and they’ve been pretty consistently well-respected in the scene for being among the first to do the whole Viking Metal thing. But they’re a band that this Angry Metal Guy has never been able to get into on the basis of one thing: Unleashed is the Manowar of death metal. Now, some people are going to say “But Manowar are the Kings of Metal! Should we not be praising Unleashed for translating such kinglyness into the Death Metal genre?” To which there can only be one response: “Absofuckinglutely not.”

Like Manowar, Unleashed writes some pretty great metal. Musically, the band produces a melodic form of tear-your-head-off death metal that has been associated with Sweden since the early 1990s. The music is powerful, pummeling and thrashy it makes the listener want to headbang! Like their Swedish brethren Amon Amarth, Unleashed likes trem-picked melodic passages that are littered with good groove and plenty of chances to headbang manically. The guitar solos are wickedly thrashy and, surprisingly enough, the bass is even audible! Musically, there isn’t a song on here that I don’t like! And the record pounds out of the gate with amazing tracks, “Courage Today, Victory Tomorrow”, “So it Begins” and “As Yggdrasil Trembles”.

However, like Manowar, Unleashed has a lyrics problem. This chink in the armor becomes the most obvious when one hits the 4th track on the album “Wir Kapitulieren Niemals”, and Johnny starts screaming “Viking Death Metal!” This is not the first time, or the last time, on this record that there are lyrical issues that stand out and make the listener a little bit embarrassing. This sort of idea that one can write about the meta-aspect of heavy metal is one of the reasons that power metal is considered to be so ridiculously cheesy. How does one take  seriously a band that sings about themselves being awesomely metal? And in some ways, its even easier with a band like Lost Horizon or Manowar because they’re wearing loincloths anyway. Unleashed are just a Swedish death metal band cursed with terrible lyrics.

We’ll stop there with our little Manowar comparison, because frankly Unleashed produces way more consistent and interesting music than Manowar ever has. While the latter has a few good songs on every record and then a bunch of shit that litters the side about how metal they are and about how big their “swords” are, the former writes consistent, enjoyable death metal. As Yggdrasil Trembles is par for the Unleashed course, littered with great songs and solid riffs. If you can bring yourself past the silly lyrics, which is often times pretty easy with death metal bands, and you’re a fan of death metal and viking metal, you’ll probably really enjoy this record. Don’t expect to be wowed by their deep interpretations of the Norse myths in reference to our every day, modern life. But then again, when was the last time any metal lyricist wowed you?

So, much to my happiness, excitement and general satisfaction, Rhapsody [of Fire] has finally released more information about their new album! The record had previously been announced to be coming out on the 5th of March, but this obviously didn’t happen. Now let me say, first: the artwork is great! Sure, it’s not as colorful as the previous stuff, but I really like it. Secondly, I can’t wait to hear what these guys sound like now that they’re not shackled by the Manowar dudes. I don’t know what went down there, but I would love to get an interview about that stuff, because honestly, that shit is fascinating. They were forced to stop touring? They got like no support. Manowar basically stole their sound on the following album. That shit is crazy.

Anyway, you can now download the new song for free from their website! I’ve downloaded it and listened to it a bunch of times. It’s great. Nice to hear a good guitar solo in there, too. I cannot wait. So the new album, entitled The Frozen Tears of Angels will be released on the 30th of April in Europe! Who’s excited!? Angry Metal Guy is excited. Now if only I could actually get promo of these things….

Audrey Horne // Audrey Horne
Rating: 3.5/5.0 — Ozzy meets modern rock! Catchy, well-produced, commercial.
Label: Indie Recordings
Websites: myspace.com/audreyhornemusic
Release Date: EU: 01.03.2010 | US: 03.01.2010 (?)

It’s been a long time since a sort of standard modern rock or traditional metal band really showed off anything that this Angry Metal Guy appreciated. For the most part, modern rock has been rehashed BS and overrated post-Seattle scene leftovers. The bands that have tried to convert their sounds (see: the remnants of Guns N’ Roses meets STP or Europe’s latest incarnation) have really failed at it because the sound is, at its root, boring as hell. Rehashing rock again with thicker guitar tone and a vocalist who will never live up to the classics is pretty much a good way to guarantee that your vocalist buddy goes to rehab, but not much more. Whatever happened to Buckcherry again? Oh right. Flash in the effing pan.

So, it was with great surprise that Audrey Horne is none of these things. Instead, Audrey Horne is a smartly packaged modern rock band with pop, pizazz and some seriously above par songwriting skills. And where are they from? Oh, you guessed it: NORWAY! Wait, you didn’t guess that? That’s right, Audrey Horne, my metal brethren, is made up of a bunch of Norwegian metal dudes who apparently are also suckers for trad rock and metal and who, instead of going the “let’s try to be Iron Maiden” route, went the “let’s make pop rock” route in their quest to pay homage to traditional metal. And they pull it off. It’s just funny to see that Ice Dale (Enslaved) is in this band. ‘Cause he’s in like every project on Indie Recordings. Anyone else notice that? Honestly, I think it’s one of their signing requirements. “Well, we only sign Norwegian bands and you gotta use Ice Dale on guitar.”

But on to the music. This is not a metal album. This is modern rock with pretty good riffs, great melodies and no shortage of wall of sound guitars. This is the kind of thing your buddy would show you and you’d say “Oh, yeah, that’s alright.. but have you heard…”. It’s the kind of thing you’d pick up, but your girlfriend would listen to more than you. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if these guys got picked up by Roadrunner and sent on tour with Nickelback. This is not meant to be an insult (because honestly, these guys put Nickelback to shame in terms of talent, song writing, originality and non-annoyingness), but the sound is palatable, sweet and catchy as hell. However, the listener feels like they’ve heard this before.. but just can’t place it.

That said, we like it! While the record drags on a little at the end, the songs on here are well composed and catchy. The opening track “Charon” bursts out the door to open the record (after the intro track “Vultures”) and had me immediately hooked, largely because of vocalist Toschie’s mix between Ozzy and Scott Weiland and his adhesive melodies—you will have this chorus stuck in your head for days afterwords. The introductory Ozzy channeling isn’t the only time it happens. Instead it can be easily seen on tracks like “Blaze of Ashes” and “Bridge and Anchors”. But these guys are really at their best when they’re doing something that’s a little bit more akin to Tool’s sound, with sort of atmospheric, melodic verse parts and big, memorable choruses like on the song “Pitch Black Mourning” and “Firehose”. The  only major misfires are ballads. This record contains a couple of them and they are no good.. just no good. Let what is dead stay dead, guys. (Really? “Sail Away”? REALLY?)

Audrey Horne is really good at what they do, but what they do is going to strike different metalheads in different ways. I can see this being really popular with sort of older, more traditional metal fans who are probably in the same age group as the guys in this band. They’re going to find everything they want: catchy choruses, good guitar solos, retro keyboard sounds and highly melodic vocals that harken back to when men were men and they had frills on their jackets. If you’re into that, or into post-grunge modern rock, then we suggest you check this out. ‘Cause, these Norwegians do it better than any American band this Angry Metal Guy has heard in .. well .. years.

Kalmah // 12 Gauge
Rating: 3.0/5.0 — Fun, but pretty generic
Label: Spinefarm
Websites: kalmah.com | myspace.com/kalmah
Release Dates: EU: 03.03.2010 | US: 04.06.2010

It’s hard to imagine a modern metal without Finnish bands, isn’t it? These guys have been pushing the scene forward for quite a while after having burst onto it with such a forceful manner a decade (or more) ago. One of the bands that has been sadly overlooked in this process has been Kalmah. These guys, while popular, have often taken a back seat to bands like Ensiferum and Children of Bodom in the international scene. This is a shame, because at least The Black Waltz put everything that Children of Bodom ever put out to shame and they make some of the later Ensiferum stuff look pretty weak, as well. While For the Revolution was a pretty big letdown for many fans, Kalmah has returned in 2010 with a scorcher called 12 Gauge.

Clocking in at an LP safe 42 minutes, 12 Gauge follows Angry Metal Guy’s rules for thrashy records with few dynamics: keep the songs short, and keep the record as a whole shorter. If you’ve only got a few tricks up your sleeve, show off those tricks and then run to hills before anybody notices that you’re not doing much more than something fairly simple. 12 Gauge fits this bill perfectly because what Kalmah is doing is very straight forward: they’re making melodic death metal which is meant to be energetic, fun to listen to and cathartic. It, however, is not at all “jaw dropping”, “technical” and it certainly doesn’t really push the envelope very much.

But hell, we don’t need every band in the world to push the envelope. Sometimes you just want some good melodic death metal to listen to while drinking a beer and banging your head, and that’s what Kalmah delivers in spades on 12 Gauge! Tracks like “Bullets are Blind” and “Hook the Monster” are blast happy, speed monsters with great melodies—the latter even containing a chant chorus! How do you fight with that? The band even breaks out their simple, melodic intros and puts them to good use on the title track and “Better Not Tell”. The  melodies are, of course, addictive and the song writing is poppy and keeps you interested by not overstaying its welcome.

However, the downsides to this should be obvious as well. There were times when I didn’t even notice the track had changed at times—such as between “Hook the Monster” and “Godeye”. They’re both great songs, but man do they sound alike. And, while the claim that they’re just writing the same song over and over is demonstrably wrong, there is a sense that this record gets a little tired towards the end. Were 12 Gauge 10 minutes longer, it probably would destroy the appeal for me.

If you love fun, fast and melodic death metal, then 12 Gauge is definitely up your alley. The band has definitely composed a number of awesome tracks that will pull fans in. For the doubting fan, this record is definitely superior to For the Revolution, but we’re not sure if it really surpasses The Black Waltz in scope and originality. While the style is definitely the same, the novelty hasn’t stayed on as strongly. Still, 12 Gauge is a record that is enjoyable and innovation be damned.

Anima // Enter the Killzone
Rating: 1.5/5.0 — So much wrong here..
Label: Metal Blade
Website: myspace.com/animamusic666
Release Dates: EU: 26.02.2010/01.03.2010 | US: Unknown

I am not a trend hater. While the whole world has been hating on Deathcore for its tight pants and swoopy hair, I’ve been defending the fact that bands don’t have to “look like metal dudes” to make good metal. While jackass elitists are purging the genre from Encyclopaedia Metallum because they don’t like the trend, bands like Suicide Silence and Job for a Cowboy have shown that these bands can write killer riffs and produce solid records—even if they’re not stylistically something I’m a big fan of. Anima, unfortunately, is not so easy to defend.

Enter the Killzone is an illustrious example of what one observer referred to as “paint by numbers Deathcore”. From the obligatory horror movie clip introduction, to the Suicide Silence ripoff “Black Night”, which is the band writing a “metal” soundtrack to a B horror movie killing. From the “dynamic” vocals (i.e., high harsh vocals and brutal death growls a la Trevor Strnad), and the At The Gates worship riffs offset by the stupid breakdowns, to the hyper-replaced drums that sound like complete fucking shit. Enter the Killzone has it all.

There are high points. The track “Welcome to Our Killzone” has a superb breakdown and some very cool staccato riffing. The final track on the record “XXXIII” has some cool keyboards towards the end that definitely stand out from the rest of the album. But while the whole album is filled with riffs that could be ripped off from any number of brutal death metal bands, the songwriting never ranges beyond the conventional. One can hardly breathe without encountering an  ill-conceived breakdown or Deathcore cliché.

Where this album really lost me, however, is the production. I am not a producer, but I do know some things about production and if the only way you can think to make the drums stand out from the music is to make them sound this tinny and fake, then I think you need a new career. Every time the drums ever stood out I shuddered with grim realization that this may be simply the worst drum production I have ever heard in my entire life. This is not an exaggeration. Notice how I bolded, italicized AND underlined it up above in the second paragraph? That’s because these drums sound like robotic, drum machine ass. But it’s not just that, everything is weirdly muffled and just sort of lacks any kind of dynamic width.

In a way, I feel bad for Anima. I’m sure that they didn’t decide how their drums were going to sound or really had much say in the final mix, either. My guess is they went to a dude who decided all of that. These guys are fundamentally sound players who write some alright riffs but got super hosed on production. Unfortunately, if I’m not the only guy who has this kind of visceral reaction to the drum sound and banal song writing, my guess is that they’ll be “entering the killzone” of the Metal Blade drop pool in no time.

See how I brought that around there? See that? Awwww, shit.

Wulfgar // Midgardian Metal
Rating: 3.0/5.0 — Entirely enjoyable, but sort of lacking something… Oh, right, originality
Label: Trollzorn / SMP Records
Websites: wulfgar.se | myspace.com/wulfgarse
Release Dates: EU: 19.03.2010 | US: No date found

The guys from Wulfgar and I have something in common: we both really love Amon Amarth. I mean, I’ve been an Amon Amarth fan since I first heard “Victorious March” all those years ago and I’ve just never looked back. I’ve purchased every one of their records since I started listening to melodic death metal and, let’s face it, I’ll probably keep listening to them for years to come until I’m old, bitter and bored with everything that I used to like (it’ll happen: then I’ll become Angry 12 Tone Jazz Guy). The difference between my love of Amon Amarth and that of the guys from this Swedish quintet is that I didn’t start a band…

OK, now that I’ve gotten the shit talking out of the way, let me say something: these guys are actually really, really good at what they do. They pump out excellent, mid-paced melodic death metal with the vocal styling of an epically bearded Swede named Emil (who incidentally does actually sound like Johann Hegg from Amon Amarth). The tracks are heavy, with great chuggy riffs and totally solid melodies which hook you in right away. You spend the majority of your time nodding your head, and I’m sure this stuff is totally awesome live. I mean, Midgardian Metal has it all: addictive melodies, fun riffs and a style that I just love to listen to.

The band has a bit of variation, as well—the track “Norsemen of Steel” sees the band wander into power metal territory on the chorus, and there are even some pretty folk metal parts on here as well. In my opinion, the band would do well to think about expanding these parts of their music. Because while I think that they’re a good band, there is definitely a part of me that wants a little bit more than an excellent audiocopy of an already loved and famous band. These guys obviously have the talent to write solid metal—so they should use that talent to expand their sound a little bit beyond the boundaries of their current sound.

To fans of the style, this record will be thoroughly enjoyable. If you can’t get enough new music that sounds like Versus the World and Fate of Norns, then you’ll be a nice shade of satisfied after listening to Midgardian Metal a few times. The comfortableness of this style isn’t lost on me. Songs like “Circle of Runes” and “The Death of Yggdrasil” definitely pound through the speakers and pummel you with a viking-like ferocity. The production is thick and meaty, and the performances are convincing. Over time you will probably forget that you’re not listening to Amon Amarth and just start to enjoy this record for what it is—solid, groove based melodic death metal about vikings and the mythology of medieval Scandinavia.

…

Just like Amon Amarth.

Borknagar // Universal
Rating: 3.5/5.0 — Very good, feels unfocused at times and its definitely a grower..
Label: Indie Recordings
Websites: myspace.com/borknagar
Release Dates: EU: 22.02.2010 | US. 03.02.2010

Borknagar is a class act and has been for a long time. Reaching all the way back to their first, self-titled release, this band has separated itself from the herd by being just plain more interesting and unique. Eventually they just separated themselves from the modern black metal scene altogether, heading towards more progressive pastures. Universal continues a trend away from the raw and simple towards the highly complex, dynamic and progressive—but the question is whether or not the band’s fans and general public will want to follow the band in this direction. Well, and whether or not where the band is leading is somewhere worth going.

Make no mistake about it Borknagar is a seriously talented and fantastic band. Even with the departure of longtime drummer Asgeir Mickelson, the band didn’t miss a beat (oh, hahahaha, I’m so funny) when they picked up American drummer David Kinkade who performs admirably while filling some of metal’s biggest drumming shoes. Vintersorg sounds fantastic as well, though he’s mixed quite far back on this record, more so than on previous albums. On a close listen, Universal is a record of incredible layers. All of the instruments are painting complex, elaborate, detailed and beautiful portraits which come together sometimes to create a grand tapestry of sound.

Unfortunately, all this epicness and detailed playing also leads to what I see as the biggest problem from which this record suffers: a lack of focus. While every song on the record has shining moments of beauty and clarity, Universal seems messy and hard to follow at times. Intros to tracks can feel like total non sequiturs when the verse actually starts, (see: “For A Thousand Years to Come”) or sometimes the instruments seemingly clash with each other instead of working together to create beautiful chords and harmonies. Particularly in my normal speakers, I found myself just wandering off mentally when this record started overload my ears with information that seemingly clashed. However, a deeper listen with earphones helped me see through this sort of foggy mix (metaphorically speaking) and helped me come to a better understanding of these tracks.

And let me say: there are some really strong tracks on this album. The opener, “Havoc” is sort of your standard Borknagar opener, but it has done its job and stuck in my head. “My Domain” which features a guest appearance from Simen Hestnæs is another track that stands out for its epic build, particularly to the end of the song and stands as a reminder of what a fantastic vocalist Simen really is (and what Dimmu Borgir lost). “Abrasian Tide” is probably the most reminiscent of Quintessence and Empiricism on the whole record, and it’s just a solid track from start to finish. But my personal favorite track on the album is probably “Fleshflower” which, while quite short by metal standards, features a fantastic neo-classical kind of melody and some really convincing vocal performances. All of these awesome tracks point me to the same conclusion, when the band stays focused, they are able to produce epic, fascinating and powerful tracks. The big problem is when they let their progressive urges get ahead of themselves and the tracks start to wander.

Of course, the above tracks are not the only ones on the album I like. Every song on here has stand out moments, but I still do feel like I just get lost at some points and really, this is the first album by Borknagar where I’m able to say that. I admittedly had some issues with Epic at times, but even that one I felt like had a lot more good than bad and I can honestly say that I never had to work at liking that record. Universal, on the other hand, is a record that I have put a ton of effort into dissecting and trying to enjoy because of the high regard I hold this band in. While in the end I still think that this is a pretty good record, it certainly didn’t manage to live up to my expectations and had I not been forced to write a cogent review of it, I don’t know whether or not I would have given it more than just a couple listens.

White Wizzard // Over the Top
Rating: 3.0/5.0 — Would’ve been the kings of metal in 1982…
Label: Earache
Websites: myspace.com/whitewizzard
Release Dates: EU: 08.02.2010 | US: 03.09.2010

There is an interesting irony to throwback bands like White Wizzard and a lot of the other thrash throwbacks that are coming out right now, which is that at one point in time what these guys were doing was forward thinking. I know it’s hard to believe, in a world where metal is used to support stupid ideologies, backwards thinking or just generally brutish and retarded behavior, it’s hard to think of metal as progressive, but in 1980—metal was outside of the box. Bands like Iron Maiden and Def Leppard were just cutting their teeth, Lars Ulrich was busy stealing their riffs and ideas and heavy metal was fresh, young, innovative and above all rebellious and really, really interesting.

These days are long gone. Metal has genrified so much to the point where one can’t hold a conversation with another metal dude who likes exactly the same bands as you, and you’ll probably argue about everything: but you’ll both agree that Iron Maiden slayed back in the day. The only other time in metal history that was as exciting as the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, in my opinion any way, was probably the Bay Area Thrash scene (though I’m not the biggest fan) and the Swedish Death scene in the early 90s. But those days are gone… They remain, largely, not forgotten however as is proved by LA native metallers White Wizzard who return in 2010 with an album that would have put them on top of the world in 1982..

Now I won’t be coy: I’ve already unveiled how it is that I feel about retro heavy metal. Sure, it’s got its moments, but all-in-all I think that these styles are better left in the past. However, Over the Top is definitely a record to give a shot if you’re even a passing fan of the style. White Wizzard does a good job of capturing the things that made the scene great: the dueling guitars, the epic riffs and the song structures on Over the Top sound like they come straight out of Killers-era Steve Harris’ playbook. Tracks like “High Roller” and “Iron Goddess of Vengeance” replicate that sound with ease and to pretty good effect. The band is tight and solid and the production is good, showing that real bands playing real heavy metal don’t have 13 guitar tracks so that you can actually hear the bass sometimes. The title track, as well, is old school, rocking and fun to listen to.

On the other hand, just like those old metal records, Over the Top has its share of filler. “40 Deuces”, “Strike of the Viper”, “Death Race” and “White Wizzard” all left me wanting more and feeling underwhelmed. These tracks don’t have the same kind of pop that one would hope to get out of an old school metal band. They lack the kind of fire that I look for when I go back and listen to classic metal. I also thought that the song “Out of Control”, while a pretty good track, had some pretty lame lyrics that sort of point out what’s going on here: a group of dudes who are longing for something that ain’t coming back. And in a way that’s sad.

The high point of the album for me personally is the track “Live Free or Die” which not only embodies the Heavy Metal spirit, but also has the vocalist (I think, or it’s another member of the band doing it) backing away from his metal voice and showing that he’s got some good melodic sense and some good pipes behind his metal shriek. This song and “Iron Goddess of Vengeance” (another just kick ass track) show off the talent that is definitely contained within this band. I just wish that they could do something musically that wasn’t so campy and throwback. But that’s me: I’ll probably be a bitter old guy living in the past some day and I’ll love the Gothenburg throwback bands because they take me back to a time when I was cool and on top of things.

Petrychor // Dryad
Rating: 4.0/5.0 — Solid post-black, intelligent and interesting
Label: Unsigned
Websites: petrychor.bandcamp.com | myspace.com/petrychor
Release Date: February, 9th, 2010

I frequently complain about black metal these days. Partially this is because I think that a lot of post-black metal is fucking boring and partially ’cause the not-post-black metal is also fucking boring. In general, black metal is in a place where nothing really that interesting is going on. Sure, there are bands out there that are putting out good material, but for the most part the signed stuff is  so-so and the classic bands are disappointing with new material and the state of the scene, in my opinion, is pretty sad. So I was pleasantly surprised to get turned onto this piece of art by the Californian do-it-yourselfer just called “T”. The project is called Petrychor and displays all of the things that I would hope to hear out of this budding scene sort of embodied in a single 3 song EP entitled Dryad.

There are two sides to this project melded into a single overarching concept, from what I can tell. The first, the piece that opens this record, is the epic and beautifully played steel string acoustic playing with a sound that deftly matches the old growth forest on the front cover of Dryad. A sound that is clean and fresh, but steeped in mystery and subtlety. The second side of Dryad is one of atmospheric, heavy but still crisply melodic black metal. Due to the production the music moves in waves, rather than any kind of technical precision that you see in other metal genres. The guitars, drums, bass and keyboards work together to build massive, epic walls of sound that flow smoothly while still being thick and forceful.

Of any band, I’d still say that Petrychor reminds me of early Ulver more than anything else that I really listen to. It has the same appreciation for beauty, the same intellectual acuity and the same dark core that drive me back to listen to Bergtatt, Kveldssanger, and Nattens Madrigal over and over. However, unlike other bands, most notably Agalloch, who have followed in the footsteps of the early Ulver work, this material is not derivative at all. “T” demonstrates a willingness to wander from the herd and to write a unique and, frankly, oddly catchy style of black metal that I’ve never really heard before. This individual is an excellent guitar player and writes solid melodic solos and the use of drum machine, particularly in the middle of the track “Gamma Leonis” indicates to me that T really doesn’t give a shit what the “trve” or “kvlt” types think.

I look forward to seeing what more Petrychor has to offer. It’s been a long time since any underground work has moved me to such exclamations and that’s the reason that I decided to write this review without any request for promo. This album is free for anyone to download at the project’s BandCamp profile (linked above) and I strongly suggest you go and download it and give a listen. And it’s definitely worth throwing 5 bucks at, I think. My only complaint is that there are no lyrics included anywhere for my perusal, but this is well worth the price of admission and your time.

Eluveitie // Everything Remains (As It Never Was)
Rating: 2.5/5.0 — Pretty solid, but too formulaic
Label: Nuclear Blast (EU | US)
Websites: eluveitie.ch | myspace.com/eluveitie
Release Dates: EU: 19.02.2010 | US: 03.09.2010

While not the first folk metal band to take the world by storm, Eluveitie has always been a bit of a unique thing in the folk metal scene. Really, the band has tremendous success when compared to other bands in the genre. After being picked up by Nuclear Blast, they’ve had three albums, big American tours (something that has only started recently for the genre) and become very well known and well loved among folk metal enthusiasts and just regular metal enthusiasts alike. Everything Remains (As it Never Was) is the band’s big third record from Nuclear Blast (5th total) and it is set to make a big metal splash.

Frankly, the band hasn’t changed anything, except that they’re more poppy than ever. Everything Remains (As it Never Was) starts out with the obligatory album intro that sets the stage for the whole album (and a sad part from Braveheart). The tracks are heavy and well-produced, but much cleaner than earlier work, and the trilling flutes and bagpipes permeate every chorus of this album, formulaically building up to the climax of almost every song in precisely the same way. At its base, Eluveitie is basically a melodic death metal band. This stood out to me as I listened to this album: tracks like “The Essence of the Ashes” have obvious In Flames leanings on the guitars. “Kingdom Come Undone” and “Sempiternal Embers” both reek of Hypocrisy and Dark Tranquillity and the only thing that actually differentiates this band from those bands is the ability of the musicians to swap out what the guitar would normally do in a DT song for a flute, fiddle or bagpipe.

But Eluveitie isn’t just a melodic death metal band, they’re a modern melodic death metal band—I’ve never really put my finger on this before. There is a ton of stoppy, “Core” riffs on this record that are simply offset by a trilling flute. The choruses are huge, poppy and bordering on schlager at times in their structure and enormity, leading often times to a sense that the verses are simply there to connect big catchy choruses to each other and for no other reason. The band has also dumped the blast beats that one hears on the earlier records completely, leaving the band far more in the post-glory days Swedish Death Metal (i.e., Gothenburg scene) arena. The song structures are quite simple and similar to each other, and because the flute basically does the same thing all the time, the songs start to sort of blend into one another. This is partially because the sort of Riverdance flute style doesn’t really lend itself to memorability, but feels more decorative than anything and the guitars and vocals don’t offset it—leading to swaths of unmemorable trilling.

Of course, there are high points on this album, too. The points where they actually point themselves in a more folk metal direction are the parts that I really appreciate about Everything Remains. For example, the chorus in the song “The Essence of the Ashes”, where they break down into clean vocals that are reminiscent of Fejd, is a major win. The folk tracks that are sort of devoid of metal are also quite beautiful and breathtaking; “Isara” and “Setlon” both set an atmosphere of beauty and simplicity which embodies the title of this album. My personal favorite track on the album is “Lugdunon” which, while it’s built on a production trick in the beginning, has excellent dynamics that are not really demonstrated on other parts of the album, including an amazing flute melody and a super 80s rock sounding breakdown that really stands out from the rest of the album.

What this leads me to is that variation, dynamics and a new approach to the metal aspects of this album are lacking. While there are some compelling songs and moments, this record generally falls short of my expectations due to its more simplistic and poppy elements, which are the things that draw the listener to the band in the first place. While Everything Remains (As it Never Was) is definitely on par for quality with Slania, I don’t think it’s as strong as Spirit and that’s probably because the sound isn’t as novel or fresh as it was when I became infatuated with “Your Gaulish War”. This band is definitely not mediocre, but this album is not what I was expecting from it. Of course, you can (and should) check for yourself (as the band has posted the album on MySpace through the 19th of February presumably).