| Appassionata (CD) | 2002 | No Label |
Necare is such a relatively unknown band, although they already went through the usual setbacks most underground bands have to face in the dawn of their career. This duo from central Virginia "inherited" the typical sound set by masterpieces as 'Paradise belongs to you', 'Turn loose the swans' and 'Serenades' adding its own flavour into a self-willed variant of old-school doom death.
The orchestral opening track 'Lux occulta' immerses the listener immediately in a pool of dark romanticism similar to the atmospheres evoked by My Dying Bride and Anathema in a past which seems more than ever lost in a mist of obscurity and bitter nostalgia. 'Eleanor' is already a first highlight, a long, epic hymn to sadness which eventually explodes in an emotional climax featuring desperate grunts and bitter-sweet keyboards. From then on it only gets better, with the ultradark 'Wall of voices', my personal favourite on this album; the delicious 'Juliet (libera me)' which, only based on the sounds of a viola, keyboards and clean vocals, manages to create an atmosphere of sorrow and -strangely enough- also undefinable hope somewhere at the end of the horizon; 'The mourner', which sounds like a mix of old Anathema and Bethlehem and the tranquil, relaxing outro/title track which leads you safely out of this sweet dream and back into the cold, harsh reality.
Although Necare does have its own, typical sound -which is far from the modern, polished doom sound we got used to lately- it clearly doesn't seek to experiment or to introduce innovation in the doom genre. It does no more, no less than that which old school doom death fans have missed so much during those last years: playing high quality, solid doom death.
Australian label Crestfallen Records proved that they have a nose for talent by signing this band early this year, so 'Appassionata' should soon lay on the shelves of cd stores, exposed to the greedy hands of embittered, old school doom death fans. You know who you are, and you have been warned.
1. Lux occulta
2. Eleanor
3. Wall of voices
4. The fury
5. Juliet (libera me)
6. The mourner
7. Even the heavens cried
8. Appassionata
Approx. 44 minutes
| Ruin (CD) | 2004 | Firebox Records |
It seems, as though Firebox records is a little bit scared, not to say panicking. Why scared? Apparently it is frightened that the stock of unsigned doom/death metal bands will run out, otherwise what’s the point in signing virtually every band on the face of earth? I mean, this label has started really well, going for the most intriguing, twisted, unique and original acts (e.g., Aarni, Umbra Nihil, Pantheist, Until Death Overtakes Me, My Shameful, Woods Of Belial etc…) only to trail off the main road and has since been picking debris, from all sides, just for the hell of it. I cannot figure the rationale in that, I cannot judge nor will I. I only write about what I observe…
The evolution for Firebox records, unfortunately, is disastrous I think, and if the people who run this label won't stop for a second and calculate cautiously their next steps into the future, alas! There would be no future for this fine Finnish label. People today are unforgiving, being quickly bored and always strive for the maximum for their money, high standards and perfection, no less. In addition, metal labels today are in abundance, thousands of them are infesting the underground and beyond, and I, as a consumer, need a real damn good reason to pick an album from the heap of albums, and pay my hard-earned coins for the pleasure…Now, would you give me a reason to do so, dear fellows at Firebox records? You’ve been busy signing every second-tier and orphaned melodic death metal band out there, most of which are faceless, disposable bands releasing similarly disposable albums, some of your latest signings just make me wonder what made you do it... You are running wild with your 'quantity over quality' ideas, and it's just not working…
Consider this a free business advice, dear friends at Firebox records…Which brings me to Necare…
Well, Necare plays the expected, familiar, predictable and uninspired sort of romantic, melodic doom/death metal. It sure is delivering its product, 'Ruin', in the most admirable way, meaning an excellent artwork, good lyrics, fine, full and ripe crystal-clear production and the ordinary slow death metal (doom???) clichés in the over-all sound and gimmicks within the music…
You would find it hard to blame bands/albums such as these, being superficial or second-class products, because they really aren't. Doom fanatics will always refer you to the aesthetics of the band, its sombre cover artwork, the sad, long songs (epic???), the My Dying Bride/Paradise Lost/Anathema/(put any other reference here) similarities, and they'll say something like: "It’s slow, it’s heavy, it is bound to be good". I say: "Bullshit!".
Necare adds nothing new, regretfully, to the underground metal music gene pool, not in the sense of song writing, nor song structure, nor in the form of some bold wild ideas, experimentation etc., the music is completely unchallenging, unintriguing and uninteresting, not only due to its lack of originality (i.e., on a comparative basis) but even when judged completely on its own.
More than a subtle echo or a hint (and that's a major understatement) can be heard throughout the recording, of other bands that did the same thing in the near or far past of the relatively short metal history. Is our collective memory so short, so forgetful that we have to repeat time and again, copy, borrow, steal even, ideas upon ideas?
Has originality and creativity been flushed down the drain with so many other qualities? I hope the answer is NO.
Epilogue: 'Ruin' is a decent, darkly tinged and quite heavy, pure doom/death experience for the uninitiated, filled with romantic and gothic innuendos. Brooding, slow and ultra clear in sound, ’Ruin’ is an excellently executed album that will appeal to most average melodic/dramatic doom/death enthusiasts out there.
I didn't find anything new or exciting about this recording, but chances are you likely will…
Reviewed by: Chaim Drishner
As much as I liked this band's demo 'Appassionata', I can't help feeling that it is blown away by their first official album 'Ruin'. Necare is a duo from Virginia that specializes in summoning the spirits of the early '90s doom/death bands that pretty much shaped the sound of modern melodic doom. The initiated listener knows of course that I’m referring here to My Dying Bride, Anathema and Paradise Lost, in short the Peaceville Three.
The very beautiful intro 'Stillborn Twilight' already raises the expectations for this album pretty high and although 'Rite of shrouds' drags a bit on (but is saved by the beautiful violin), from then on the album offers the one highlight after the other. 'Desire' consists of an extremely catchy, melancholic guitar melody followed by a romantic piano interlude which would soften up some of the most brutal extremists in the doom scene (emphasis on the word 'some' here); ‘canto XXXIV’ is embellished with some cool guitar slide effects and Ryan's Darren Whitesque exclamations; the title track contains a very beautiful orchestral intro which flows into an epic track that will fill the Peaceville adept with nostalgia towards lost times of musical romanticism; the beautiful 'Celia' rings a bell because it is a re-recording from the band's previous work; 'gethsemane', my personal favourite, is pure early Candlemass worship (take notice of the Biblical theme and poetic lyrics which draw this track even closer to the concept and sound of the masters of epic doom); while the god-denying 'touching emptiness' is arguably the heaviest track on this album with its sharp, angry riffs and Ryan's frustrated grunts. Agreed, Necare are not reinventing the wheel, but let's be honest: how many bands are nowadays? With a few notable exceptions, most bands that we call 'original' are just smart musicians who are able to hide their sources better than the others. And personally, in an age where most doom bands seem to be preoccupied with a desperate desire to be either very extreme or very true, I prefer Necare's honesty and their offering of decent songwriting, beautiful atmospherics and a healthy dose of respect to their sources of inspiration, without ever becoming too formulaic.
Reviewed by: Kostas Panagiotou
1. Stillborn Twilight
2. Rite of Shrouds
3. Desire (The Dawn & The Chrysalis)
4. Canto XXXIV
5. Ruin
6. Celia
7. Gethsemane
8. Waters of Quiet
9. Touching Eternity
Approx. 60 minutes