DARK AGE - review added 13th November 2009
Album Review: Acedia (2009)
For fans of: Melodic Death Metal... and interesting artwork
German metal band Dark Age - apparently named after a song by Polish death metallers Vader, is Eike Freese on vocals and guitars, Jörn Schubert on guitars, Alex Frank on bass, Martin Reichert on keys and André Schumann - drums. They have been plying their sounds since the mid 1990's. They already number into double figures of releases, although Acedia is only their 6th studio album.
Those sounds are certainly unusual. The overriding sensation is of melodic death metal, but it's built on a bedrock of industrial aspirations and electronic trickery. The usual kick drums, nomadic guitar solos and howling vocals are all present and correct, but there's a huge amount more than that.
This is music with layers. It's like the onion Shrek mentions in his eponymous film, only it isn't green or shaped like an ogre. On top of the demonic screams are pleasant clean vocals. Under the guitars are mischievous symphonic keyboard musings. The production has so much depth you can get lost in it and not have a clue where you are or what you are listening to. It's good, but it's VERY busy at times. Whether the depth is a problem or not is going to come down to the individual listener.
Opening track 'Kingdom Nevercome' is a case in point. It has a fantastic sound, but it's almost trying too hard. Some people will love the wall of sound, others are going to run away with their hands over their ears. For me, with a few percentage points of extraneous noise wiped away, the song could have been sensational. It's bloody good anyway, but a definite case of what might have been.
And so the album goes on. There's a common thread of sound that runs from start to finish. The songs maintain individual personalities - just - but there's a definite theme to the musicianship. The whole shebang is well above average; some of the vocals are astonishing (just check out '10 Steps To Nausea' for all the proof you need), and the musicianship is absolutely beyond reproach. In the end there's just an inkling somewhere in the back of my mind that, with a more cautious and sparing approach to some of the tracks, it could have been another rung or three better.
Still...Acedia is the best industrial tinged, and indeed best melodic death album I've heard for a good while. I highly recommend it, even if you don't normally like this sort of thing.
Check out... The artwork by Niklas Sundin. It's bleak and nondescript, but has a look that suggests the original could be worth thousands of pounds.
CD Track List:
01. Kingdom Nevercome
02. Devote Yourself To Nothing
03. Neon Gardens
04. Snake Of June
05. Zeitgeist (Ghost In A Machine)
06. 10 Steps To Nausea
07. Halo Meridian
08. Underneath These Burdens
09. All The Unfulfilled
10. Babylon Riots
11. Myself Heretic
Label: AFM Records
Artist's website(s): Dark Age , MySpace
