Ningizzia "Dolorous Novella" CD
[Haceldama]
40+ minutes of somber atmospheric metal from this Swedish/French duo (with guest female vocals, violin, and flute), recorded over the course of three years. This is pretty damn good, I like it. It's got a doomy sort of ring to it, but it's not that ominously crushing or anything like that. It's just got that slower sort of plodding tempo and a good sense of layering between chord progressions and tastefully symphonic keyboards. Most of the vocals are powerful low growls, contrasted by deep spoken passages and a little bit of singing as well. Most of the female vocals are used more as texture than anything else. Occasionally they bring in some acoustic guitars to spice things up, which sounds very nice, but the general core of the songwriting is consistent and flows along nicely without getting stale. "Point of No Return" has some similarities to earlier Katatonia on some level, notably during some of the simplistic lead lines, but those nuances are just little flashes within the grand scheme of things, for the most part this is much different than that. As far as the production is concerned, I don't mind it at all. Considering that the recordings took place over a long period of time in two different countries the end result is fairly smooth and consistent. Sometimes the guitar tones have an unnatural bite but it's subtle enough to pass, and the density of the percussion and vocals really blends in nicely. I might like to hear more prominent bass or thicker guitars, but it's fairly clear as it stands. The drums sound programmed, but I can deal with the rigidity of the tones thanks to their placement back in the mix and whatnot. Good work overall. The layout keeps it simple and minimal using mostly grays and a dull blue color with some stylized images of falling angels and such. And, of course, the lyrics are rather bleak and depressing: "And so it ends, and so we die, Wither away like autumn leaves, A slow descent into oblivion, Where we shall dwell, Forever and ever..." I'm into this, definitely. If you're into slower, moody metal with a great sense of atmosphere and no cheesy devices I would suggest looking into this. (7/10)
Running time - 42:07, Tracks: 5
[Notable tracks: Spirit of the Abandoned, Point of No Return]
Haceldama Productions - http://www.haceldama.com

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