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Band: Cadaveria
Album title: Silence
Release date: 17 November 2014
Label: Scarlet Records
Tracklist:
01. Velo (The Other Side Of Hate)
02. Carnival Of Doom
03. Free Spirit
04. The Soul That Doesn’t Sleep
05. Existence
06. Out Loud
07. Death Again
08. Exercise 1
09. Almost Ghostly
10. Loneliness
11. Strangled Idols
Whether you consider 13 a fortunate or unfortunate number, it's a number Cadaveria can be proud of, because that's how many years have passed by since she departed the avant-garde black metal ensemble Opera IX and established herself as a noteworthy musician with her outfit of the same name. With the so called horror metal style Cadaveria embraces, the band has been flowing in the waters combining elements of extreme metal genres, such as black metal, death metal and on the other side their melodic cousins, traditional heavy metal and gothic metal. The horror themed melodic, yet extreme form of metal seem to be blossoming in Italy, as their fellows Theatres Des Vampires have set the standards for the female fronted bloodshed extravaganza and it looks like this particular formula certainly does find its enthusiasts (leaving Dani Filth and his sky-blue contact lenses somewhere in the background, sorry Dani). Furthermore, Cadaveria's fifth full length release, Silence, doesn't fall short from the established sound of the band and is even more, a great leap forward from their last release, Horror Metal, that seemed to have left quite a bitter after-taste. Can't say Silence is the sweet opposite of it, but more like blood – salty and obscurely appealing (to some).
"Velo (The Other Side Of Hate)" is a kick-ass starter of the album, going straight to the fifth gear with thrashy guitars and tones of loath and aggression; so just when you think Silence will be prevailed by the old school extreme sound, the song slowly sways into a gentle melody and Cadaveria's wretched growls transform into a siren-like, agonizing vocals, right until the tempo speeds up again. Giving you that, this is the formula Cadaveria have been repeating throughout the entire album. "Carnival Of Doom"is probably the most representative song of the album, building on eerie, mid-tempo black metallish melody and adding various insertions to it. There are some quite pleasant exceptions though, which indicate Cadaveria are not afraid of some experimentation, like the doomish beginning of "Death Again", sophisticated (but way!) too short piano intro in "Almost Ghostly" and gothic metal influence in "Strangled Idols". Out of all, I simply must point out "Loneliness", a song that I truly fell for immediately and has enchanted me with its captivating, catchy and mesmerizing chorus, which is by far the most profound and introspective part of the entire album. The flamboyant and melodic guitar riffs at the end intensify the songs mind-provoking and agonizing atmosphere so gently and nicely, making this song the absolute highlight of the album. But if you noticed, I only mentioned bits of pieces of each and every song that I indulged in, and that is the major flaw of this album: the lack of smooth integrity. Just when I start enjoying a song, there comes an insertion, whether a death metal drum attack or heavy metal fiery energy, which somehow weakens the song and interrupts its ambient and everything immediately falls out of balance. Even "Loneliness" loses its astonishing charge due to the attack of fast paced drumming and Cadaveria's growls, which really don't do any justice to the other part of the track, which bring out the melodic, haunting and enchanting story of the song.
Of course, Cadaveria and her vocal work play a leading role in the album's ambiance and there is no denying in that. Her delivering of the most twisted growls and screams, filled with witchery and devilry and on the other side the suave vocal lines sung in her deep and low mezzo-soprano, passionately portrays an array of tenebrous and dreary ambiances, from sorrow and grief to most wrathful and inflamed emotions. Her vocal works accompanies the overall tempo and its aura and together the musical and the vocal part of the album do entwine themselves into the entire idea of horror-esque music. After all, horrors are the all about darkness, hatred, mutilation, blood, gore and/or even a self-exploration within the dark corridors of your own twisted mind and not the romantic comedies with a happy ending, rainbows and unicorns.
Giving this album a definite rating is an ungrateful task, but I must partake in it. As I was really drawn by its mesmerizing and gloomy, gothic-like insertions, I only wish the band would strengthen and deepen those moments, because it is fairly obvious – it has been in Cadaveria's entire career span and on this album – they can really pull it through. But there are far too few to really grab my attention and make me want to repeatedly play this album and making me feel this band has so much unused potential under their sleeves. On the other hand, production, musicianship and composing on Silence shows a very nice and strong step forward from its predecessor and shows they aren't afraid to climb out of their comfort zone and will not settle in just one place. I'm fairly sure Cadaveria fans must have found something really precious in Silence (an album, that is anything but silent), but I am going to wait patiently in hope that the next album will deliver something a bit more like a supernatural horror: full of suspense, that sends shivers down my spine rather than sheer, trashy gore.
Review written by: Ines
Rating: 6,5/10
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