| The Sombre Light of Isolation (CD) | 2004 | Firebox |
The well layed-out promo and first few minutes of introduction lead one to believe that this will be an intense, gripping album, but sadly this feeling lasts only for so long. The larger part of this (too long) album consists of unremarkable melodic doomish metal, which is devoid of experimentation or originality. Although the music is very well executed, the vocals are a 'love it or hate it' case, and there is simply not much that makes 'The Sombre Light of Isolation' stand out between today's plethora of quality doom metal albums.
I urge The Eternal to try and develop a more focused way to bring across their message. Overall, the songs just don't get you attention the way a quality doom metal album should. Don't get me wrong, there are several moments on this album which are catchy or worth your while - the last two songs are quite OK, even - yet those moments are too few and far between to justify a 66-minute album. Listening music is a time-consuming issue and one simply has to make choices, and as far as I'm concerned, this album just doesn't cut it compared to others out there.
I do think the band should continue to make music, however, and songs like "All Hope Lost" do show some hope (however paradoxical that may sound) for the future, but I think there should go a little more thought into making an album that stands out as opposed to 'just making good music'.
1. Commemorate the Misery
2. A Cruel Misfortune
3. The Eternal
4. Down
5. The Sombre Light of Isolation
6. Black Serenity
7. Crimson Sacrifice
8. Harmony of Dissonance
9. Remembrance Scars
10. All Hope Lost
Approx. 66 minutes
| Sleep of Reason (CD) | 2005 | Firebox |
So, what can we say about 'Sleep of Reason'? Something that has, if not improved, stayed the same is the outstanding level of musicianship, artwork and production. No points lost there, as this is in all those respects a highly professional release. Another relatively constant factor is the general sound of the band. It still is, for the larger part, rather lightweight melodic and melancholic metal. Mark Kelson's vocals are also very strong on this release. Here and there the style is a little softer, with some emotional rockish songs in the mix.
Some of the more heavy songs stand out positively, in particular 'To Drown', 'Hollow Inside', and the slightly long-drawn 'Weight of Empathy'. On the whole, sadly enough, I'm left with the same feeling I had after listening to the previous album. It all goes down slick as butter (perhaps a bit too slick), but doesn't leave any impressions. For some reason, The Eternal are dangling between two worlds. This album is too easy going and leaves too few scars, so to speak, to appeal to lovers of serious, brooding underground music. On the other hand, the album does not contain enough variation or catchy hooks, and is therefore too long to truly appeal to a large audience.
Personally, being someone that demands a lot from most music, I would love to see this band turn more towards catering to underground music lovers. On the other hand, if the band wants to be known to a large audience, they would have to take a diametrically opposed direction. In the end, a band caters in the first to itself, so The Eternal should try and make up their minds about which way they want to go. Until then: sorry, decent album, but all too redundant.
1. Awaken, Arise
2. Everlasting
3. To Drown
4. A Soul Undone
5. Hollow Inside
6. In My Skin
7. A Dream's End
8. Beneath the Soil
9. Sleep of Reason
10. The Dying Light
11. Weight of Empathy
Approx. 59 minutes