I sat and listened to this album with an utmost joy and a fathomless shiver. Images of endless flow of stars, parallel worlds and distant planets emerged in front of my very eyes. I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe… but I’ve returned to tell you a story about a musical journey comprised of 9 chapters lasting 53 minutes long entitled Singularity.
The first piece Dual Existence has a classical Enshine-like sound and structure. According to Sébastien Pierre and Jari Lindholm the first track is meant to conceptually tie Origin with Singularity. This track kicks in with a fade-in synth section lasting around 30 seconds which then gives rise to the crushing leads, powerful drums and entrancing keys in the verse. Then we get to the pre-chorus “the days of our lifetime are gone” - the voice says as if we were leaving this world transcending into a different dimension. After the chorus, the track slows down as if time ceases to be and only a trademark Jari’s solo brings a listener back from the trance. Another chorus and the track finishes off with an outro which builds around a wall of rhythm guitars added on top of an enchanting solo which makes it a perfect gateway into the second track.
The second track Adrift begins with a hypnotic and mystic synth melody which reminds me a lot of an intro to another great track by this band Brighter. A couple of seconds later we hear Jari’s and Sébastien’s dual clean vocals which are beautifully incorporated into the whole atmosphere. Then out of a sudden, an entrancing guitar riff and the powerful Sebastien’s growls kick in breaking an aerial mood dominating this track since the beginning, “Come, come with me, today we leave, to end it all…” – with those spoken words comes a culmination of the whole song when guitars together with the synths form a tsunami wave. Like giant waves in a quiet harbor this track comes down on its listener. It slowly grows on its listener until it takes him in its musical vortex and finally hits him on the ridges with the majestic one minute solo at the end.
The third track called Resurgence begins with a speed-of-light guitar section awakening us from the meditative state of the previous track. A very attentive listener would probably be stunned by the new elements in the face of various rhythm sections, new industrial elements and some fast-paced guitars that this track has to offer. This track is one of the fastest songs ever written by both Jari and Seb and the overall pace of the first half of the track reminds me of the last Fractal Gates output. In the chorus things become a bit more doomy and then we slowly enter the realm where dream keys combined with powerful Seb growls enchant its listener with the most powerful atmospheric section on the album. The Jari’s magnificent solo brings this whole act to an end. Though, the musicians decided to end it with another fast guitar section that wraps up this marvelous, musical Pandora box.
If you were going to ask me, what is the highlight of the album and the catchiest track on Singularity, I would have to say In our Mind. It stands out from the rest of the tracks in many ways. Let me just mention a few things that make this track so special. Firstly, it has a breathtaking opening riff that will undoubtedly charm you right from the start. Later on we get to the pre-chorus part where Jari’s clean and Seb’s growls are combined to form an atmospheric plateau that leads us to the fantastic chorus, “Soar, unbind your trance. Open wide your wings, for this is our chance”. Aerial keys hand to hand with the beautiful guitar riff resonate extremely well with the chorus that repeats two times. At last to take the remaining breath away of the listener, the band introduces the most epic, 2-minute solo I’ve ever heard. All those above mentioned ingredients make In our Mind an ultimate highlight of the album.
The interlude called Astrarium II sounds very similar to the first part with an exception that the latter is more dynamic and sounds more harmonic. In the mid part, the instrumental becomes more upbeat thanks to the ambient percussions and some light post-rock guitars with soothing synths. In sum, Astrarium II is a very complete and decent instrumental which serves as a great intro into the second part of the album.
The musical piece entitled Echoes starts off with a rapid rhythm guitar section with some post-rock elements. I have to mention that it is a second fastest track on the album after Resurgence. It naturally evolves into a great chorus “I'm only real in the Moment. Our origins will echo forever”. Also, this track has a lot more to offer to its doom metal fans. Somewhere around minute 3, right after another solo, the song slows down and becomes somewhat meditative. Then Seb`s almost speech-like vocal performance would strike the listener with a quaint sound. This whole part reminded me a lot the album Songs for the Withering by Rapture. In the end, we can enjoy another long solo, one of the most tragic on the album, I daresay.
Dreamtide – sounds almost as if it was taken from the album Fallout by Slumber. It is the slowest tracks on Singularity, yet it sounds very ambient and apocalyptic at times. One can definitely enjoy the finest drum work by Marduk drummer and brilliant ethereal synths that play a major role in this song. Together they create an atmosphere of a total hopelessness and a cosmic coldness, “I'm falling into a dreamtide”. Somewhere towards the end, we feel like as if we were sucked inside a wormhole where there is no way out. Luckily the slow keys at the end brings us back to life and we are back on track with Enshine towards the final trance.
So, the 8ths song The Final Trance talks about a longing for home in hope to find another shelter in the outskirts of our infinite universe. The intro sounds somewhat similar to Nightwave but later on it changes pace when Jari introduces a very heavy and yet melodic guitar passage which instantly washes away all heavy thoughts. The track has two brilliant solos, solid keys and a doomy atmosphere that won’t let you down.
Thus, we have come to the end of our journey and it’s time to draw a conclusion. This is where we traditionally find an instrumental peace. Apex was one of the first tracks composed by Jari back in 2013, but it was destined to wrap up this album. The track starts off with a slow post-rock vibe in the veins of the latest Seas of Years release. It turns into a beautiful wall of symphonic keys around one minute and a half which awakes us from a soothing slumber. Then there is a guitar progression, more ethereal keys and silence… Around the 3rd minute, the track becomes more guitar driven due the tremendous tremolo which gets us to the song’s apex. A stellar guitar riff accompanied by the graceful keys fills our soul with solace and hope before disappearing over the horizon.
For almost 53 minutes of the album run time I mentally stepped over the edge of singularity. This sacred place is full of arcane lore, where time ceases to exist and amidst these galactic wonders we shall one day meet our doom. After listening to this album you may someday rest in peace knowing that there is music on earth which can come close to the beauty of the night sky.
Ratings and notes
Production:
Guitar – 0.5
Vocals – 0.5
Drums – 0.5
Mix – 0.5
Mastering – 0.5
Maximum score: 2.5 out of 2.5
The overall recording isn’t super polished, however there are no particular flaws that I could point out. This kind of production fits extremely well to the atmosphere and adds a special flavor to the mix. Plec and Jari did an outstanding job.
Songwriting:
Atmosphere – 0.5
Melody – 0.5
Catchiness – 0.25
Harmony – 0.5
Variety – 0.5
Maximum score: 2.25 out of 2.5
The atmosphere is out of this world on this record. There is more variety compared to the previous output. Artists tried to sound more extravagant this time and, thus, the material became a bit less catchy and hard to digest at times. Nevertheless, this music genre doesn’t need to be catchy but requires a deep, thorough spinning.
Instruments and musician skills:
Keys and synths – 0.5
Drums – 0.5
Guitar (solo & rhythm) – 0.5
Bass – 0.5
Vocals – 0.25/0.5
Maximum score: 2.25 out of 2.5
Seb’s vocals are perfect and sound powerful as always. This time around there is more clean vocals, but I would love to hear more of that on the upcoming releases. Jari’s guitars are pure masterwork and his genius solos sound just perfect. Drums have more variety this time thanks to Fredric Widigs.
Other:
Lyrics – 0.5
Visuals – 0.5
Concept – 0.5
Creativity – 0.5
Soul – 0.5
Maximum score: 2.5 out of 2.5
One can feel that both composers tried to put their soul into this album which can be seen, heard and read via their artwork, their music and their lyrics.
The final verdict: 9.5/10
No comments:
Post a Comment