Theia

I've actually been listening to this album for a long time...I've hesitated in giving a review because it's one of those tricky albums that my brain really likes, but my heart just feels ok about.

Some of the tracks I can wholeheartedly recommend. II hits its beats hard and has wonderful plodding heaviness. IV is just beautiful...a lot of musicians try to do interesting things with the human breath but rarely as effectively as here. The melancholy tenor voice, the burning guitars, and the breath catching in the throat. V is a difficult track--the voice is caustic even by death metal standards--but the chorus has power. The entire album has high production value and moments of exquisite taste. See the restrained intro to VIII for an example.

As a whole, though, the album is too damn slow and too damn monotonous. I like atmosphere and repetition a lot, but when I see an album with twelve tracks labeled I through XII, I expect it to tell a story, like chapters in a book. I have no idea what the story is here. I don't think that there is one. Sonically, I think that things get a bit quieter and more reflective as the album goes on, but I'm not sure.

I also want albums like this to present me with moments of genuine emotion. Death metal emotion is stylized...a guy screeching into a microphone. That's fine--better than fine--but I think that every album needs a moment when real, unaffected emotion breaks through, and I don't think that happens here.

This was a tough album to review, but certainly a worthwhile listen.