Emperor
IX Equilibrium
[Candlelight]
Hmmm…. Before I start analyzing the music let me give you a little history about the band… Before they formed Emperor the guys (Ihsahn, Samoth, etc) played in a Death Metal band called ‘Thou Shalt Suffer’, later, under Euronymous’s influence, they changed the bands image, music, and name to Emperor – which was pure Black Metal… This has really come full-circle for Emperor, as this CD is more Death Metal than Black Metal and it sounds remarkably like, you guessed it, Thou Shalt Suffer…
The first time I listened to this CD I completely hated it, the vocals sucked and the effects were overused, but the more I listened to this album, the more I liked it. I think that’s it’s very hard to like a work such as this on it’s first spin, give it some time… This CD does have its fine aspects; for example, the guitar playing on this album is very, very good, making good use of some highly technical riffs. The drums are also played very nicely and have a real nice sound, and, as a musician myself, I can tell you that the song-structure (that is, the order in which the song was composed) was also done quite well… but the only thing to REALLY impress me on this album was the flawless production, it’s crystal clear and amazingly done. I really must commend the producer of this album for a job well done! Unfortunately, the bad qualities of this album are as numerous as the good ones… the singing is (usually) horrible, the synths overused, and, perhaps most importantly, all the symphonic qualities ‘Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk’ had in abundance are gone on this CD… instead of the beautiful intertwining melodies that Emperor used often on ‘Anthems…’ and ‘Nightside…’ this disc just repeats basic riffs over and over again. It is a mystery (at least to me) why they chose to do it that way. Musically, this is worse than typical Emperor…. Or maybe it’s just cause I don’t like the Death Metal style that they’re beginning to play. This CD, unfortunately, marks Emperor’s departure from Black Metal.
Pros: Technical guitars, nice drumming, amazing production
Cons: Poor singing, synth overdose, a lack of atmosphere and symphonic qualities
Style of Music: Technical Death Metal, with a focus on rhythm guitars and synths.
Will likely appeal to: People who like the new style of music that they play, trend followers. (This CD will likely NOT appeal to fans of the band because it is a departure from their traditional Black Metal style; it also likely won’t appeal to Black Metalers for the same reasons stated above.)
Overall: I’m not a fan of this type of music, but they still do it well… Good – 7.5/10
© 2000 sauron anarazel
The first time I listened to this CD I completely hated it, the vocals sucked and the effects were overused, but the more I listened to this album, the more I liked it. I think that’s it’s very hard to like a work such as this on it’s first spin, give it some time… This CD does have its fine aspects; for example, the guitar playing on this album is very, very good, making good use of some highly technical riffs. The drums are also played very nicely and have a real nice sound, and, as a musician myself, I can tell you that the song-structure (that is, the order in which the song was composed) was also done quite well… but the only thing to REALLY impress me on this album was the flawless production, it’s crystal clear and amazingly done. I really must commend the producer of this album for a job well done! Unfortunately, the bad qualities of this album are as numerous as the good ones… the singing is (usually) horrible, the synths overused, and, perhaps most importantly, all the symphonic qualities ‘Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk’ had in abundance are gone on this CD… instead of the beautiful intertwining melodies that Emperor used often on ‘Anthems…’ and ‘Nightside…’ this disc just repeats basic riffs over and over again. It is a mystery (at least to me) why they chose to do it that way. Musically, this is worse than typical Emperor…. Or maybe it’s just cause I don’t like the Death Metal style that they’re beginning to play. This CD, unfortunately, marks Emperor’s departure from Black Metal.
Pros: Technical guitars, nice drumming, amazing production
Cons: Poor singing, synth overdose, a lack of atmosphere and symphonic qualities
Style of Music: Technical Death Metal, with a focus on rhythm guitars and synths.
Will likely appeal to: People who like the new style of music that they play, trend followers. (This CD will likely NOT appeal to fans of the band because it is a departure from their traditional Black Metal style; it also likely won’t appeal to Black Metalers for the same reasons stated above.)
Overall: I’m not a fan of this type of music, but they still do it well… Good – 7.5/10
© 2000 sauron anarazel