In the Woods... "Strange in Stereo" CD
[Candlelight]
The third and final full-length from In the Woods... came in 1999 (also from Misanthropy Records), and like most bands pushing the envelope, they continued to press forward into even more experimental territory - bringing in a healthy electronic presence (without abandoning the trappings of their roots) and working with generally shorter songs that average around six minutes as opposed to 10 or more. The male and female singing both play a pretty equal role on this album (I'd like to hear more of the female vocals though, as honestly she's at her best on this record and outshines the male vocalist when given the chance), and the tempos are more consistently midpaced to slow. Opener "Closing In" is probably the most "out there" track on the disc, with its dominant electronics and programmed percussion, but I honestly love that and think the record could have been phenomenal were that the central direction of the material. Long pieces such as "Generally More Worried Than Married" and "Path of the Righteous" aren't so far off from the group's prior work, just perhaps slightly more streamlined. I really like the production on this record. It's as thick as "Omnio" was, but everything is warmer and brighter, and that extra clarity keeps things from sounding muddy in the least, while keep everything in the mix close together. Once more the layout is the same thing as the original pressing, this time bringing in some band photos, and more handwritten lyrics - at times arranged upside down or backwards as mirror images. The red lettering can be hard to read over the dark background colors/textures, but visually it does look nice. Not unlike "Omnio" the lyrics can be somewhat clouded as far as meaning, and perhaps become even more "poetic" in arrangement. "What is addiction with absence of drug, What is grey without the presence of white, Days remain hollow with absence of night..." As a whole this is definitely the band's most consistent record in so much as listening to it from start to finish nothing really stands too far to the side, and for the most part everything is consistently pretty damn good, as opposed to good, then a little weak, then not so good, then incredible, etc. I don't like it as much as "Omnio" because the best tracks on "Omnio" pretty much crush the best tracks here, but this album is certainly not one to be overlooked. (7/10)
Running time - 63:09, Tracks: 11
[Notable tracks: Closing In, Basement Corridors, By the Banks of Pandemonium]
Candlelight USA - http://www.candlelightrecords.co.uk

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