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Beatrik is an Italian band that formed in the autumn of 1998. The highlights of their career so far can be summarized in two demo tapes, two full-length albums (this one included) and an appearance on a Katatonia tribute album. Until 2002 the band was a one-man business but today the funeral ensemble is a trio, opting for a more serious and professional approach. It is no coincidence that the Italian band was invited to participate in the Katatonia tribute because their slow and melancholic form of black metal share several musical elements with the early material from the Swedish doom merchants. They do however lack much of the strong melodic touch of Katatonia. Fans of Shape Of Despair and Skepticism who don't mind a sinister, black edge are a good target for the music of Beatrik as well.
"Requiem Of December" and the song title "My Funeral To Come" make you associate to Katatonia instantly and the angst and agony carried by the vocals is not entirely disparate either but the emotional effect is not as strong. It is an album whose foundation is based on slow, churning and captivating rhythms, often repetitive and suggestive in their nature. The road that Beatrik follows is almost entirely straight and there are very few bumps or turns in either direction. While "Requiem Of December" is an album that does possess some qualities, it is unfortunately too predictable and anonymous to leave a lasting impression on me. The doom elements pierce deeper into the mind of the listener than the black metal influences and perhaps the band is still looking for the perfect recipe to mix these two ingredients in the most successful way.
If music in the crack between funeral doom and melancholic black metal sounds interesting to you and you don't mind the biggest surprise being the sound of birds then Beatrik is at least worth taking a closer look at. They are definitely not the typical sounding Italian band, which could be both a positive and a negative remark depending on your personal taste I guess. 48 minutes of melancholic anxiety.
| Tracklist |
| 1. My Funeral To Come |
| 2. Requiem Of December |
| 3. Eternal Rest |
| 4. The Last Wandering |
| 5. Apollonia’s December, 7th 1647 |
| 6. Returning After A Death |
: 47.55
| Buy other Beatrik albums |
