Reviews
2007-07-05
The first thing that struck me about Fear The Future's debut album was a name I saw in the CD's booklet – Tomas Skogsberg, the famed death metal producer who's name I haven’t seen for a long time. He engineered and recorded the album, and his touch is evident in the clear and strong sound the album benefits from. I've read that the mixing dragged on and so the work was finished by PNA, whoever is responsible, the album sounds good.
The group, mostly made from ex and current members of Swedish bands Benighted and Karneywar, creates symphonic yet atmospheric black metal which sounds exactly the way it's supposed to be – melodic, yes, but still aggressive, interesting and dark… all the things that make this kind of music work.
The album is split into three parts, each one consists of several songs, and musically they are quite similar. A strong blend of aggression and a deeper feel of melancholy are persistent throughout the release.
One of the things the band did right is the use of keyboards in a way that accentuates the inherit melody that their music has, instead of overpowering it. The mix favors the drumming, thankfully very well done in the album, and the strong vocals that have a very clear pronunciation and a real blackened quality to them.
A stand out track that shows off just why this album is so good, is the first in the second section of the album – "Eyes Wide Open", which includes a spoken verse part and some of the darkest atmospheres in the album. The combination of strong technical ability with the amount of sophistication and feel put into this just makes it work.
This is one of the best black metal albums I've heard in some time, I just hope we'll continue to hear from this talented band in the (fear inducing) future.
Alon Miasnikov
