| Here
we are with an unexpected release.The workaholic bass player and
great composer Leif Edling after the infamous Candlemass reunion shocks
the doom metal scene with a very good album.In this new project of his
we find Leif on the bass,Mats Leven on vocals who sung for Yngwie
Malmsteen some years ago and finaly 2 members of Entombed.The bass
player of Entombed,Jorgen Sandstrom plays guitar in this cd and on the
drums we find Peter Stjarnvind from Entombed again.Guest musicians are
Carl Westholm who adds great keyboard parts and Nicko Elgstrand,Fredrik
Akesson who contribute with some guitar solos.
Lets have a look at each song separately...
1.Black Room-A song that i like more and more every time i hear
it.I don't like it as an opener for the album but perhaps Leif wanted to
give the listener an idea of what will follow in the rest of the cd.From
the moment you push play you hear the slow/heavy riff of the
song,classic doom metal song.Just a good song,nothing spectacular...
2.Krux-The self titled song.Interesting tunes,nice riffs and the
vocal lines have a haunting melody.All in all a very good song but not
the best of the album...
3.Nimis-A great song here!The ideas for this one i think Leif had
them from some old demos of
his back in the 80's.The riff is nothing huge but the song as a whole
works very good.
4.Sibiria-This one is a strange one.It has the same chords played
all the time and on vocals it's Leif Edling himself.Creepy melody and
melancholic vocals.Very atmospheric song.
5.Omfalos-Ok,here is the BEST song of the album.The riff is
huge,super heavy and is 100% pure
doom metal.I haven't heard such a great doom metal song for many
years.If Leif continues to
write so good songs then we must wait with big anticipation the new
Candlemass album.The chorus
is amazing with the small choir in the background and a very good guitar
solo by Fredrik.
6.Enigma EZB-Another excellent song follows.Starts with an
Entombed style riff and the song
doesn't get you bored in any part.A great mix of Candlemass and Entombed.
7.Popocatepetl-Very good song,not as great as the previous 2 but
still great work by the guys.
Lyrics deal with earth and Leif expreses his love and respect to our
planet.
8.Evel Rifaz-This one is a 2 minute instrumental by Leif
experimenting with various effects on
his bass.Usualy such songs are boring but in this one there are some
weird and dark sounds.It
works probably as an intro to the next song...
9.Lunochod-The last song of the album.It's a 12 minute song
divided in seven parts.It is about
the space and talks about the Russians and Americans who send subtles
out there etc...Starts
with a classic doom riff,then many other riffs and melodies make this
one another excellent song.
Carl adds a lot of atmosphere in this one,his keyboard work is
exceptional.The song stops in some
parts and slows down with some weird sounds then kicks in again with
killer riffs.In general it's
very experimental,different sounds,variations and good music above of
all.
In conclusion
it's an album worth checking. The lyrics are very interesting, Leif has
always been a great lyricist and worked hours on making them perfect.
The music of the album is pure doom metal with some Entombed influences.
The Greek 'Metal Hammer' magazine has picked this album as album of the
month. I won't say if it deserves it but this cd has at least 4 songs
that will leave you speachless.
The rest are just not as good as the top ones. All
Candlemass fans should get this cd of course. Musically it is
very close to the band's last 2 albums and i think the new album will
have some similarities in the whole feeling.
8,5/10
Dimitris
Theodoropoulos 
|
Niederrohrdorf
- Switzerland