Enslaved "Below the Lights" CD
[The End]
Enslaved is back again with more discordant black/death metal with a progressive edge, and this time I think they're picking up to head in a more interesting direction than the last album. Ever-changing, this definitely doesn't sound like a repeat of their past efforts by any means. Brought forth is a lot of tasteful layering of clean guitars and some synths as well as a mix of incendiary screaming and calm singing. There are a few excellent melodic solos, at times infusing a lot of rock influenced playing, and on the more technical side there are lots of stuttered chord progressions using different phrasings and time signatures as well as fast and complex thrash patterns. I actually think the singing vocals sound better than ever, and I'm very impressed by the emotional qualities of the writing in general. The rhythm riffing in "The Dead Stare" is damn near upbeat in a loose sense of the word, it's just very energetic and memorable, quite different from all of the band's past work; "The Crossing" is a massive 9+ minute epic with lots of acoustic guitars and powerful instrumental passages; and "Ridicule Swarm" combines eerily melodic orchestrated synths with chugging chord progressions and forceful melodies to create one of the finest pieces herein. I think the tempo variation throughout the songs is a big help, too. They retain the intense blasting speeds of black metal, but also mix it up with plodding rhythms and midpaced tremolo picking and other such bits and pieces. The recording is strange in that it sounds dryer than much of their work to some degree, but all of the subtle details and layering of guitar textures really makes things thick and lush, as do the superb singing vocals. I might turn up the bass a bit to add some density since the drums are a little bit flat and the guitar distortion is textured without a great deal of low-end punch, but for the most part I think everything sounds really good. They've been careful not to let any of the elements be too dominant, and the minor details of the material aren't lost in the shuffle either. The layout is somewhat strange. No lyrics are included, just a few brief lines spread throughout the booklet, which includes a few photos of the band members standing in front of a large decorative mirror. The artwork seen elsewhere is somewhat abstract, and I'm not sure what to make of it. I like the cover, but I'm not completely clear on what it represents, not that it's supposed to be so obvious. All in all this is a great record. There are a few dull moments that hold things back as a whole, but not enough to really hurt matters. I like this better than their last effort, and I think this is a good sign of where they might take things in the future. (8/10)
Running time - 46:16, Tracks: 7
[Notable tracks: The Dead Stare, Ridicule Swarm, A Darker Place]
The End Records - http://www.theendrecords.com

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