'Ignored Classics' is a pretentious title, but so am I. A title, I mean. The point of this, and upcoming reviews, is to shed light on albums that might have passed you blissfully by, music that deserves a wider audience (in my opinion, of course). I do understand that many people have *not* ignored the albums I deem "ignored". These people can truly feel proud to have purchased a piece of metallic legendry. heh. anyway.
CELESTIAL SEASON: Solar Lovers
This Dutch band's second effort is truly a masterpiece of melodic doom/death metal. When I first listened to it, I was surprised by the two first tracks "Decamerone" and "Solar Child", which were both more uptempo and less "doomy" than their first album 'Forever Scarlet Passion'. However, with the strength of the remaining tracks, I was soon engulfed in a very fine album. The crunchy, very heavy guitars, the twin violins, the stereo death vocals far in the background, the elegant yet simple lyrics...it all came together in a potent mix of heaviness, sad melodies and haunting beauty.
If you enjoy the early efforts of bands like My Dying Bride, Anathema, and Paradise Lost, then no doubt Celestial Season's 'Solar Lovers' will please you. Celestial Season were, after all, inspired by this wave of British doom/death bands before it went all 70s with their later albums like 'Lunchbox Dialogues' and 'Chrome'.
The songs on 'Solar Lovers' are long, slow affairs, with plenty of melody. The best tracks are "The Scent of Eve" (Celestial Season's answer to 'The Crown of Sympathy'?) and the epic beauty of "Decamerone", but the rest of the tracks are almost as good. The odd piece in here is the cover "Vienna". The uptempo "Dancing to a Thousand Symphonies" is catchy and shows signs of the band's later venture into seventies-inspired music. There is one specific part in this song, at 1:35, which has a particularly enchanting melody lead by the two violins.
And all the time, this album is SO groovy.
CELESTIAL SEASON: Solar Lovers
This Dutch band's second effort is truly a masterpiece of melodic doom/death metal. When I first listened to it, I was surprised by the two first tracks "Decamerone" and "Solar Child", which were both more uptempo and less "doomy" than their first album 'Forever Scarlet Passion'. However, with the strength of the remaining tracks, I was soon engulfed in a very fine album. The crunchy, very heavy guitars, the twin violins, the stereo death vocals far in the background, the elegant yet simple lyrics...it all came together in a potent mix of heaviness, sad melodies and haunting beauty.
If you enjoy the early efforts of bands like My Dying Bride, Anathema, and Paradise Lost, then no doubt Celestial Season's 'Solar Lovers' will please you. Celestial Season were, after all, inspired by this wave of British doom/death bands before it went all 70s with their later albums like 'Lunchbox Dialogues' and 'Chrome'.
The songs on 'Solar Lovers' are long, slow affairs, with plenty of melody. The best tracks are "The Scent of Eve" (Celestial Season's answer to 'The Crown of Sympathy'?) and the epic beauty of "Decamerone", but the rest of the tracks are almost as good. The odd piece in here is the cover "Vienna". The uptempo "Dancing to a Thousand Symphonies" is catchy and shows signs of the band's later venture into seventies-inspired music. There is one specific part in this song, at 1:35, which has a particularly enchanting melody lead by the two violins.
And all the time, this album is SO groovy.
