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October 12, 2008 |
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INSOMNIUM - Above The Weeping World
Candlelight (2006) |
10/10 |
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01. The Gale
02. Mortal Share
03. Drawn To Black
04. Change Of Heart
05. At The Gates Of Sleep
06. The Killjoy
07. Last Statement
08. Devoid Of Caring
09. In The Groves Of Death
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This is the third album to date for this formation hailing from Finland and one of the very few gaining international exposure without being signed on Spinefarm Records. When their previous album, "Since The Day It All Came Down", was released in 2004, these guys received positive reviews worldwide as they were able to bring something new and refreshing to the world of melodic Death Metal by adding acoustic and traditional Scandinavian folk elements other formations from the same area such as ENSIFERUM and AMORPHIS make use of, rather than making the easy decision to use the customary keyboards. INSOMNIUM were also very successful capturing the desperate mood of Doom Metal bands such as SWALLOW THE SUN and early PARADISE LOST in order to mix it with the most aggressive elements of today's Extreme Metal basics. After more than two years INSOMIUM are back with a selection of nine songs that constitute their new album, "Above The Weeping World".
As usual, the album opens with an instrumental song, "The Gale", which lasts over two minutes - just in order to set the mood so you know that for the next 52 minutes there will be nothing happy coming from your stereo. With "Mortal Share", it is quite easy to realize why INSOMNIUM have been compared to DARK TRANQUILLITY since day one. The guitar parts are extremely melodic and despite most of their compositions like the superb "Drawn To Black" or the spellbinding "At The Gates Of Sleep" going way beyond the six or seven-minute benchmark, there is no chance in hell this album will make you bored any time soon. In the most captivating fashion, the closing track, "In The Groves Of Death", is also another lengthy piece, hitting the 10-minute mark.
If you are familiar with the material released on INSOMNIUM's previous outputs you will also notice - by listening to such tracks as the furious "Changes Of Heart", the double kicking "Devoid Of Caring" or the very catchy "Killjoy" as well as the very thrashy "Last Statement" and its razor sharp guitar-riffs - that "Above The Weeping World" is by far the heaviest and most aggressive album they have recorded to this day. By contrast it also seems like the melodic parts of each song here are enhanced, giving a new dimension to their compositions.
For a fairly young formation like INSOMNIUM, the impact felt from this album can be compared to what the greatest bands in Metal have been able to create in the past. The fact is that they have not only been able to improve dramatically from one album to the next, but have also raised the bar for future releases by being extremely successful to mix various musical genres in a fashion comparable to OPETH's masterpiece "Blackwater Park". Today, Finland is becoming the number one place when it comes to new talents in Metal and with this new release, INSOMNIUM are leading the pack.
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