Dark Tranquillity – We Are The Void
Genre: Melodic Death Metal
Label: Century Media
Another masterpiece from Sweden emerges from the frozen land to slay all that is bullshit in metal, like some kind of antediluvian beast or Lovecraftian horror of the Unknown.
Actually no, We Are The Void doesn’t actually sound like that. But it IS another bullshit-slaying masterpiece from these Swedes, and it’s another riff-fest and throat burner of true melodic death that only the Swedish can do. It’s a simple review for a complex album, and I think my T.B.T. below will describe it better that this.
But, when you can get your grubby hands on this album, I recommend it whole-heartedly.
8.5 out of 10.
Track By Track:
Shadow In Our Blood – 3 minutes and 46 seconds of awesome. Starting with keys and a beat, a totally killer riff kicks in at 17 seconds, and Mikael’s voice shortly thereafter joins in. It sounds like something that could have been on Fiction, but with even more maturity with the keyboard work, seeming to bring the instrument even more fully into the band’s sound. Great song, and catchy as hell to boot!
Dream Oblivion – Straight off from the first moment it’s a more guitar oriented song, and it’s pretty dark. Keyboards are a little on the symphonic side, kind of blackened, but the song itself is so Dark Tranquillity. I think this will be a great song to mosh to at a show.
The Fatalist – Probably one of the most Swedish sounding songs on the album as far as verse riffs go, the harmonics going on here would probably make Zakk Wylde smile. The chorus is gorgeously done with the keys and guitar mixing nicely. Anders Jivarp is solid on the drums with this song, not being too showy and flashy, but rocking that throne like he… well… owns it. Shitty analogy, wicked song. One of my favorites on the album, in fact.
In My Absence – Another asskicker of a song, this one starts off with a solid riff, leaving the keys to definitely play a more supporting role rather than starring, until the chorus at least. It’s fast, fast and fast, even compared to some of the fastest Dark Tranquillity songs. Love it.
The Grandest Accusation – The keyboard work of Martin Brändström is in full glory with this song, while Niklas and Martin are laying some of the most melodic guitar parts. It’s a great counterpoint to “In My Absence”, which was fast as hell because this song is nice and slow for the most part.
At the Point of Ignition – Again, this one could totally have fit onto Fiction, but at the same time it almost seems a little to angry to have been on that album. Again, Anders Jivarp is doing some amazing things on his drum kit, being a little more showy and faster, and Mikael seems to be ruining his throat. The solo at the 2:03 mark is just Metalgasmic, if a little on the short side.
Her Silent Language – This is one gorgeous song, lyrically, but also vocally and guitar wise. Daniel seems to be standing out a little bit more with his bass, but mostly because I seem to be able to hear it more than on the rest of the album. The man doesn’t fuck around with his instrument, he does what he’s supposed to do: be the backbone. Another one of my favorite tracks of the album.
Arkhangelsk - I don’t know if it was the intention with this song, but it has a total symphonic black metal feel and sound going with it. Something like Sothis or a really pissed off Dimmu Borgir (the rerecorded Stormblast), but with another Metalgasmic solo happening at the 3:12 mark. It’s another one of my favorites on this album.
I Am the Void – Back to the more modern Dark Tranquillity song style, the pseudo-title track is fucking awesome. Fast with tapped verse guitars, a nice keyboard/chuggy guitar prechorus, and ANOTHER Metalgasmic solo at 2:32.
Surface the Infinite – We’re almost finished the album (unless you have the Deluxe version of course), but it’s not like DT are going to slow down for the end yet. Full speed ahead with a catchy as AIDs chorus full of lush keys and somewhat Maiden-esqe verse guitar structure. Daniel is again shining a little more than usual on this track and I’m jelous of the tones that he’s getting with his bass. Another amazing song, one that I think would be even better live. It just has that kind of structure that lends itself well to a live setting.
Iridium – Alright, now it’s time to slow it down, we’re reaching the end of the ride. “Iridium” is totally melancholy, with a blackened as fuck chorus, and some seriously gorgeous bass tones. Daniel is like a bright light here, his bass super present in the mix more than almost all the other songs combined. Niklas and Martin are playing some doomy stuff for the verses too, which is a nice thing for DT to do. I think they could do a doom album after hearing this song, and it would be awesome. And at almost seven minutes long, with the keys trailing for awhile at the end, this would be a perfect concert closing song.