Katatonia "Viva Emptiness" CD
[Peaceville]
I have to say, when I first popped this in I didn't really like it at all. I'm not sure I would say that I disliked it, but I was definitely less than impressed, and the entire album pretty much blew by without anything specifically impressing me all that much. All I could think was, "Well, at least it was something different for a change..." Because despite similarities to "Last Fair Deal Gone Down" and its immediate predecessors, this record is a hell of a lot different than all of Katatonia's prior work. That being said, about five listens later it was starting to grow on me, and within a week I was actually liking this a whole lot. So the record definitely needs some growing time. What's so different? Well, for one thing, this record is a lot heavier, both as far as the production and as far as the riffing. There's quite a bit of reliance on groove, and that was one of the things that took me the longest to get accustomed to. But there's also a hell of a lot more tempo variation here, with some songs actually creeping into faster territory (see "Will I Arrive"). The vocals are generally the same singing that has been present for the last several records, backed by a little bit of an aggressive tinge on rare occasion, as well as some nice harmonies, etc. The singing definitely seems more confident, though. The songwriting is still sort of straightforward, mixing a lot of heavy and clean guitar parts, however there are some excellent uses of experimental nuances such as little spurts of synths or programmed drums that I like a lot. "Criminals" is the first song that really breaks into some catchy riffing and perfects the balance of styles with the atmospheric/experimental sort of edginess. The chorus in "Walking by a Wire" is so fucking incredible that it makes it an instant classic, the riffing is borderline technical to some degree, and along with the layers of sustained notes and forceful vocal lines is the real focal point (a scenario also present in "Complicity"). "Omerta" even showcases some folk types of influences with it's calmly strummed guitars and "dooo, dooo, dooo-dooo" vocal harmonies, noticeably standing out from the other songs stylistically. "Inside the City of Glass" is an instrumental that closes things out with a sound most similar to Katatonia's older work, just taken to a far more dense and menacing degree. Very interesting. The recording is damn good. I do think the guitar tone might be slightly overproduced from a density standpoint (the bass and drums could have been allowed to handle more of the low-end spectrum), but the mix is great, the drums sound really natural, and I most enjoy the level of subtle detail involved. There are a lot of little twists and turns within the textures and layers of the recording that aren't that obvious but make a large impact on the record as a whole. Good stuff. The layout on this thing is fucking great. This is some of the best work I've ever seen from Travis Smith. All of the images are in black and white, with subtle uses of metallic silver ink, and the imagery is dingy and dismal, depicting images that seem to reference decay, hopelessness, possibly confusion... just great, great work. The lyrics are also a bit of a change this time around, opting for less blatantly depressing directions, while still treading a less-than-upbeat path, "Defy only if you have a way to resist the lies, Decline only if you have the intention of taking this advice, Apply only if you're not afraid to see your spirit die, Retreat only if you dare not hear yourself say goodbye, Who brought me here this place is familiar, Where houses are black under the sun, Strangers pass on streets with strange names, All I can think is how soon they have come..." I can't say that this record is better than the three that came before it, but I will say that I think Katatonia is really heading down an interesting new road here. If they can develop this direction to perfection, I will be supremely impressed. I don't think this is where most people expected the band to go, but in the end I'm glad it's where they've ended up. (8/10)
Running time - 52:45, Tracks: 13
[Notable tracks: Criminals, Burn the Remembrance, Walking by a Wire, Complicity]
Peaceville Records - http://www.peaceville.com

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