And then there are days when I receive music that goes far beyond my usual musical horizons. The Finnish band Marianas Rest achieved this with their release this year, "The Bereaved." Normally, an opener like "Thank You for the Dance" closes an album, a song that begins calmly, subtly, and culminates in an epic monument, practically a soundtrack. "Rat in the Wall," however, is as melodic as an Amorphis song, sung with growling death metal vocals and clean backing vocals.
The following song "Divided" perfectly combines a Gothic atmosphere, symphonic harmonies, Death Metal growls and a tension that runs from the first to the last minute.
"Again into the Night" has a similar structure, however, this song is somewhat straighter and less sluggish in tempo. "Burden" has a certain "Sølstafir" feel to it in terms of the chords and the chorus. Otherwise, the song improves as it progresses. Now I've reached the point where I say, those were five good, but also relatively similar songs; now there needs to be a bit of a break in terms of sound and instrumentation. The band achieves this with the song "Diamonds in the Rough," which clearly comes from the melodic death metal genre, but not from the poppy side. Instead, it's from the perfect hybrid corner where death metal and pop push each other to the limit in terms of power and melody.
"Pity the Living" shifts the focus from melodic death metal towards melodic doom. The guitar work in this song is impressive, with one hook chasing the next, punctuated by a classically inspired guitar solo. It's perfect imagery, conjuring up images of mossy, misty Nordic landscapes.
I would have preferred to use the melancholic, semi-acoustic instrumental piece "Tyhjä" as the album's intro rather than placing it so close to the end, as its impact is somewhat diminished there. If it had been used as an intro, it would have perfectly set the tone for the upcoming album.
I would have preferred the melancholic, semi-acoustic instrumental "Tyhjä" as the album's intro rather than placing it so close to the end, as its impact is somewhat diminished there. If it had been used as an intro, it would have perfectly set the tone for the album to come, while "The Color of You," as a semi-ballad with doom metal influences, isn't quite as compelling as the preceding tracks. But that's nitpicking. I never imagined it would be such a joy to listen to such sad and melancholic music, which is simultaneously so powerful that it makes you forget the melancholy. A fantastic album.
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