Yep, more downcast tunes to accompany the autumn months. Thine seems a rather strange band. Their first record, "A Town Like This", came out in the late-90's and was simply not very good. An interesting and original fusion of loose black metal influences against strange avant-garde atmospherics and contrasting dynamics, sure, there's no doubt—it was creative work. But the songwriting was honestly on the bland and disjointed side. Thankfully, a whopping four years later, the band practically reinvented themselves with their sophomore tour de force, "In Therapy". I remember being very intrigued by the album cover when this showed up in my mailbox three years ago, and not knowing what to expect, I was quite enamored by the record's moody Katatonia meets Anathema histrionics: Complete with soaring vocal harmonies, melancholic lead lines, and relatively simplistic midpaced chord progressions. Those contrasting dynamics are still in place, as are occasional references to some avant-garde atmospherics, but the songwriting on this outing is absolutely awesome: Catchy and memorable without lacking any emotion or gloomy feeling. A painfully underrated album, too. I eat this shit up, and highly recommend this CD. Seriously, while Thine certainly has their own touch, if you like anything that Katatonia or Anathema have done in recent years, you absolutely must give these guys a shot, as some of these songs are simply incredible:
Thine "In Therapy"
Thine "Contact Point"
Thine "Feel"
Apparently (Thankfully!) the band is still active, though they parted ways with Peaceville Records last year, and haven't released any recorded material in the time since "In Therapy". Their website indicates that recording for a third record should be underway, but details are nominal at best. Hopefully the new material will indeed see the light of day sooner than later... I'm quite eagerly looking forward to it!
As usual, if you dig it, pick it up. This one's also available for a mere $8 brand new from the always impressive folks at The End Records:
Comments
this is another cd that i bought almost blindly after reading about it on the old site and downloading the title track, and shit did it prove to be a keeper. really atmospheric stuff, you said it best - melancholic and gloomy, yet somehow catchy. a perfect sountrack for the season. thanks for the reminder, great, great stuff.
10.13.2005 | By chris
i have loved this cd ever since you first reviewed it on the main site
11.5.2005 | By Anonymous
i dont know if you will read this, but..
i have only 5 tracks of this album and i’m sure its one of the most beautiful albuns i’ve heard.
if you have the lyrics, could you send it to me?
thx
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4.1.2006 | By elton