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So here's another band that I was up until now unaware of, and while I had no prior knowledge of them, I think that I instantly got a perfect idea of what type of band this was upon hearing the first two tracks. The music has a very nice modern atmosphere that is given color and life with doom and death elements. "Monolithic Death" is a pretty good opener except perhaps as an intro it is dragged out too long. The atmosphere created however remains present for the entirety of the album, which is both a plus and a minus, which I'll explain later. On a more specific note, the guitar riffs are pretty cool but the drums lack vivacity and were mixed pretty poorly. The bass drum in particular sounds like a boot tapping on the floor. Some of the "bizzaro" guitar effects are also out of place, but I suppose they are all intended to fill out the atmosphere of the piece. I think it would have also been nice to mix up the bass and guitar parts as well. While the bass is very quiet and often drowned out by the guitar, you can tell that it normally plays the exact same note as the guitar, or the root of the chord the guitar is playing, whichever applies. A little tonal or especially rhythmic variety would be more than welcomed. "Rise of the 2nd Moon" is a particularly rocking tune, and the vocals work nicely with the alternating verses. My main issue with this album is the blatant lack of energy. Even when the songs pick up a little bit, it still feels lethargic and drawling. They have all the pieces in place for the more uppity parts of the songs, but something holds it back. My explanation for this is the over-emphasized atmosphere of the album. The slow, grinding, doom-ridden atmosphere is drilled into the listener's head so early on that there is no escaping its pervasiveness.
Just a little FYI that I thought I'd mention, this album bears an incredible resemblance to (in my mind at least) Morgoth's 1993 release Odium. The atmosphere is almost identical and a lot of the guitar riffage has the same rhythmic feel as well. As far as I'm concerned, this is not a bad thing because I'm particularly fond of the aforementioned album. One other major drawback of this album is repetition. It is a LONG album, and while this has its upsides, there is also the downside of becoming uninteresting. Once you've listened to the first few tracks, the following few strike you as uneventful. While that comment may be a little extreme (I do realize this) it is certainly founded upon a truthful notion that over-using a very specific idea is bad! Once the originality of something is gone, its value is greatly decreased. I feel that if they had put a few "truly" energetic songs in the middle of the album, my attention would have been kept more fully. I don't want this review to sound too negative however because it is definitely a good album. I truly enjoyed listening to it and it will surely get at least a few more plays in my stereo. And I must once again give credit where it is due, I'm not sure I've ever heard a doom / death atmosphere or mood held more firmly throughout an entire album. Overall, Runemagick's latest is definitely worth a listen and a chance, although its initial impression may not last too long.
| Tracklist |
| 1. Monolithic Death |
| 2. Rise Of The 2nd Moon |
| 3. On Funeral Wings |
| 4. Dragon Of Doom |
| 5. Hyperion |
| 6. Ocean Demon |
| 7. Emperor Of The Underworld |
| 8. Trifid Nebula |
| 9. The Doomsday Scythe |
| 10. Riders Of Endtime |
| 11. In A Darkened Tomb |
| 12. Black Star Abyss |
| 13. Wizard With The Magick Runes |
: 74.14
| Buy other Runemagick albums |
