Swallow The Sun - "Songs From The North I, II, III" (Album Review)

By: Dan C.

Album Type: Full Length (Triple)

Date Released: 13/11/2015

Label: Century Media Records

There’s a mix of styles throughout this first epic piece as it will blend in some acoustic folk on up to more or less funeral doom arrangements.  The second album is much more refined and clean which leans strongly towards a folk approach.  The third album comes back to more doom laden tracks. This 3^rd piece is even heavier than the first. I think of the band Kongh when Swallow the Sun hit some pivotal doom moments here.  Songs from the North is some serious shit. Now go turn this stellar masterpiece all the way up and break out the whiskey and hash.

“Songs From the North I, II, III CD//DD//LP track listing:

Disc 1

1. With You Came the Whole of the World's Tears

2. 10 Silver Bullets

3. Rooms and Shadows

4. Heartstrings Shattering

5. Silhouettes 6. The Memory of Light

7. Lost & Catatonic

8. From Happiness to Dust

Disc 2

1. The Womb of Winter

2. The Heart of a Cold White Land

3. Away

4. Pray for the Winds to Come

5. Songs from the North

6. 66,50´N,28,40´E

7. Autumn Fire

8. Before the Summer Dies

Disc 3

1. The Gathering of Black Moths

2. 7 Hours Late

3. Empires of Loneliness

4. Abandoned by the Light

5. The Clouds Prepare for Battle

Swallow the Sun is:

Juha Raivio | guitar

Markus Jämsen | guitar

Mikko Kotamäki | vocals

Matti Honkonen | bass

Aleksi Munter | keys

Juuso Raatikainen | drums

The Review:

Finish group, Swallow the Sun, take a big leap of faith with their latest release, “Songs from the North I, II & III,” which takes the word “fucking epic” to a new level. This is a TRIPLE album in case you didn’t follow the number sequence there within the album title. Swallow the Sun blend so many different variations of sound within this entire series of albums that it’s hard to pin down on what style of music to call it. There’s cathedral/organ sounding keys at times mixed with regular piano sounds, guitars that go from distorted to ambient delayed harmonies, vocal ranges that go from dark guttural Neanderthal grunts to clean and polished and finally the drums that are pretty slow and fluid throughout.

The first album leans towards darker elements and with swooping guitars that doom out with lots of echo on the vocals. There’s a mix of styles throughout this first epic piece as it will blend in some acoustic folk on up to more or less funeral doom arrangements.  

The second album is much more refined and clean which leans strongly towards a folk approach. You will not hear any distorted guitars on this 2^nd piece so either broaden your mind or skip on to the third album. There are ambient textures within the flow of keys and acoustic guitars along with harmonies that embellish strange mystical moody stuff that will make you sleepy if you smoke too much herb. It’s pretty ballsy of these guys to break out into such delicate tunes sandwiched in between two heavy doom albums.

The third album comes back to more doom laden tracks. This 3^rd piece is even heavier than the first. I think of the band Kongh when Swallow the Sun hit some pivotal doom moments here. The keys are still strong in this third album but the guitars are more dominant than anything else. Lots of guttural vocals closing out the album with a black metal vocal approach. 

This is an album I see myself drinking to while chaos ensues around the city, with my power cut off, so I’m catering to candles everywhere, I lost my dog, my girlfriend and my heroin and there’s no chance I’ll be able to catch the next episode of Hell’s Kitchen on the telly. So there you go. Songs from the North is some serious shit. Now go turn this stellar masterpiece all the way up and break out the whiskey and hash.  

“Songs from the North I, II, III” is available here

FFO: Novembers Doom, Katatonia, Ghost Brigade, My Dying Bride

Band info: official 

The Sludgelord News: Ghost Brigade kick off European tour

GHOST BRIGADE will embark on a string of European concerts today. The Finnish masters of melancholic heaviness will be joined by AGRIMONIA from Sweden and Estonian TALBOT. The tour, presented by Metal Hammer, Germany and Metal.de, is kicking off in Germany at the Magnet, Berlin tonight and runs through seven more countries until a final show in Hamburg on the17th of February. You can find a full list of confirmed dates below.

The band commented: "Friends! We are excited to announce our first European tour in three years this February! We will bring great support bands with us, which both released excellent new albums and have been in heavy rotation among GHOST BRIGADE members. AGRIMONIA, feature members from AT THE GATES, MARTYRDÖD and more, come from Gothenburg, Sweden. TALBOT are a sludgy duo from Tallinn, Estonia. We saw these guys recently live and well... we had no other choice but to ask them to come on tour with us. Great band, period. See you all on the road!"

06 Feb 15 Berlin (DE) Magnet
07 Feb 15 Wroclaw (PL) Liverpool
08 Feb 15 Wien (AT) Arena
09 Feb 15 Salzburg (AT) Rockhouse
10 Feb 15 München (DE) Backstage
11 Feb 15 Aarau (CH) Kiff
12 Feb 15 Paris (FR) Glazart
13 Feb 15 London (UK) The Purple Turtle
14 Feb 15 Haarlem (NL) Patronaat
15 Feb 15 Essen (DE) Turock
16 Feb 15 Antwerpen (BE) Kavka
17 Feb 15 Hamburg (DE) Hafenklang
21 Mar 15 Turku (FI) Klubi

13 Aug 15 Dinkelsbühl (DE) Summer Breeze Open Air (Exact date tbc)

GHOST BRIGADE are touring in support of their current album 'IV - One with the Storm', which is still available in various formats via the Season of Mist shop. You can read our review here

Source: Season of Mist

Ghost Brigade - IV – One with the Storm (Album Review)

Album Type: Full-Length

Date Released: 7/11/2014

Label: Season of Mist

‘IV – One with the Storm’ CD//LP//DD track listing:

1).  Wretched Blues
2). Departures
3). Aurora
4). Disembodied Voices
5). Electra Complex
6). Stones and Pillars
7). Anchored
8). The Knife
9). Long Way to the Graves
10). Elämä On Tulta

Ghost Brigade is:

Manne Ikonen | Vocals
Tommi Kiviniemi | Guitar
Wille Naukkarinen | Guitar
Veli-Matti Suihkonen | Drums
Joni Saalamo | Bass
Joni Vanhanen | Keyboards

Review:

Being a big fan of music that evokes the desire to sit in the corner and weep, the latest offering from Ghost Brigade ‘IV- One With the Storm’ is welcomed with open arms. Heavy in places, soft in others, this album captures a perfect blend of ferocity and melody. Elements of Katatonia emerge through the prominence of melodic doom, although various styles of metal are incorporated within the album, flashes of Opeth are certainly apparent in parts. Although this is a relatively sombre album, the post rock chuggy rhythms lighten up the melancholic vocals, along with the pensive lyrical content the album becomes an emotional journey of ups and downs.

‘Wretched Blues’ is a depiction of their heavy side, immersed with growled vocals and pummelling riffs, it sets a tone that isn’t exactly continued throughout the album, but is a great antithesis to the more chilled out, melancholic melodies that follow. ‘Departures’ is the track of the album, predominantly due to the undisputable catchiness of the chorus and the aforementioned Katatonia style, portrayed particularly through the guitars. Manne Ikonen’s clean vocals have almost a grungy style, at times sounding a bit like Layne Staley and a lot like Shaun Morgan from Seether. The change up between clean and extreme vocals is utilized well, adding an unpredictable element to some of the songs. ‘Disembodied Voices’ encapsulates Ikonen’s varying vocal style, going from delicate emotionally charged clean vocals to a pained roar.

The album does meander slightly towards the end, ‘Long Way to the Grave’ maybe perceived a bit too emotionally exhausting for some people. Nevertheless, the overall strength of the album is prevalent. In basic terms ‘IV - One with the Storm’ is a very likeable album, it’s not too heavy, it’s not too doom and gloomy, it strikes a good balance that caters to a widespread section of metal fans. Ultimately, it’s memorable, and an easy un-demanding listen, that deserves your full attention. It certainly grabbed mine. 

Words by: Heather Blewett

You can pick up a CD/LP copy here.

For more information:

Official | Facebook