From Finland, after the well-received debut album Pure Negativity, Graveborne return with a new high quality album. Through the Window of the Night (2014) delivers a black metal that is much in the Swedish melodic vein, but at the same time harsh too.
The Finns are all experienced musicians with a background in other more or less known bands of the Finnish scene and show off a skillful songwriting with a solid riffing and a substantial guitar work, although the rhythm section is limited to the essentials. The production is professional and good, but the sound of the drums is not the best. The result is an effective black metal that nicely elaborates different influences in a personal way. The album starts straight to the point without an intro; “Burn the City of God” carries the listener away with a powerful bichord series. The melodic approach emerges in the second track “Tiesi päähän”; here and in other songs like “Misericordia” one will find reminiscences of Gorgoroth, above all from Quantos possunt ad Sanitatem Trahunt. I also find that a few polyphonic sections are slightly reminiscent of Swedish Sacramentum of Far Away from the Sun. Other highlights are the slow and sinuous riff of “Root of Evil” and the choruses of “Todkrieg”. Just as it started, the album closes without an outro with the intense “Men Behind the Sun”.
Graveborne make a black metal that certainly draws on different sources of inspiration, but it is not mannerist, and the melodic element does not intend to make the songs more easy listening, but it definitely adds variety. The songs are all well-constructed; each of them has recurring riffs, which contributes to the sense of unity and also to the enthralling effect. Less interesting, the texts are crude, but commonplace, anti-religious, in particular anti-Christian, hymns; a better artwork would also have been desirable.
In a nutshell, Through the Window of the Night is not an innovative album but its keywords are solid riffing, vigorous black metal, personality. A must listen.
Notes:
Release date: January 20 2014 on Séance records.
Tracklist:
1. Burn the City of God
2. Tiesi päähän
3. Root of Evil
4. Misericordia
5. Into the Abyss
6. In the End I Find My Beginning
7. Pyhää verta
8. Todkrieg
9. Men Behind the Sun
Personnel:
Blood-Baptist: Bass
Pentele: Drums
Marchosias: Guitars
Raato: Vocals
Horkka: Guitars
Text by Herjann
herjann@unhoyblackmetal.com
The Finns are all experienced musicians with a background in other more or less known bands of the Finnish scene and show off a skillful songwriting with a solid riffing and a substantial guitar work, although the rhythm section is limited to the essentials. The production is professional and good, but the sound of the drums is not the best. The result is an effective black metal that nicely elaborates different influences in a personal way. The album starts straight to the point without an intro; “Burn the City of God” carries the listener away with a powerful bichord series. The melodic approach emerges in the second track “Tiesi päähän”; here and in other songs like “Misericordia” one will find reminiscences of Gorgoroth, above all from Quantos possunt ad Sanitatem Trahunt. I also find that a few polyphonic sections are slightly reminiscent of Swedish Sacramentum of Far Away from the Sun. Other highlights are the slow and sinuous riff of “Root of Evil” and the choruses of “Todkrieg”. Just as it started, the album closes without an outro with the intense “Men Behind the Sun”.
Graveborne make a black metal that certainly draws on different sources of inspiration, but it is not mannerist, and the melodic element does not intend to make the songs more easy listening, but it definitely adds variety. The songs are all well-constructed; each of them has recurring riffs, which contributes to the sense of unity and also to the enthralling effect. Less interesting, the texts are crude, but commonplace, anti-religious, in particular anti-Christian, hymns; a better artwork would also have been desirable.
In a nutshell, Through the Window of the Night is not an innovative album but its keywords are solid riffing, vigorous black metal, personality. A must listen.
Notes:
Release date: January 20 2014 on Séance records.
Tracklist:
1. Burn the City of God
2. Tiesi päähän
3. Root of Evil
4. Misericordia
5. Into the Abyss
6. In the End I Find My Beginning
7. Pyhää verta
8. Todkrieg
9. Men Behind the Sun
Personnel:
Blood-Baptist: Bass
Pentele: Drums
Marchosias: Guitars
Raato: Vocals
Horkka: Guitars
Text by Herjann
herjann@unhoyblackmetal.com