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Wiegedood-De_Doden_Hebben_Het_Goed-NL-CD-FLAC-2015-CATARACT
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ARTIST : Wiegedood STOREDATE : 05-08-2015
ALBUM : De Doden Hebben Het Goed RIPDATE : 05-05-2015
YEAR : 2015 RUNTIME : 38:35 min
GENRE : Black Metal LANGUAGE : Dutch
LABEL : Consouling Sounds GRABBER : EAC Secure
SOURCE : CDDA ENCODER : FLAC 1.2.1
QUALITY : 1014kbps Avg 44.1kHz 2 channels SIZE : 292.4MB
URL : http://tinyurl.com/pdvp3hs TRACKS : 4 Files
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01 Svanesang 13:00
02 Kwaad Bloed 7:12
03 De Doden Hebben Het Goed 6:53
04 Onder.Gaan | Voznesenie 11:30
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38:35 min
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│ Ever heard about the story from the Indian subcontinent of the blind │
│ men and the elephant? If so, please allow me this digression before │
│ I get into the review of an album (a very good one, by the way) from │
│ a band featuring members of Rise and Fall, Oathbreaker, Hessian and │
│ Amenra, who are all part of BelgiumÆs Church of Ra metal scene. │
│ │
│ The story is about an elephant who wanders into a village and a │
│ group of blind men attempt to ascertain what it is by touching │
│ various parts of its body. ôIt is a pillar,ö claims one with his │
│ arms wrapped around a leg of the beast. ôNo, it is a rope,ö says │
│ another, as he grabs the tail. Still another (holding a tusk) │
│ reckons it is a weapon and another (with his hands on the side of │
│ the elephant) says itÆs a wall. The point is that perceptions change │
│ û especially if you donÆt have the full story û but you can still │
│ gain something even if you are not sure what it is. │
│ │
│ You can tell where this is going, canÆt you? │
│ │
│ You guessed it, I admit that I listened to this album without ever │
│ hearing a note from any of the bands that the members of Wiegedood │
│ are in: Amenra (guitarist Levy Seynaeve, who is also on vocals │
│ here), Rise And Fall (Wim on drums) and and Oathbreaker (Gilles │
│ Demolder on guitar). │
│ │
│ So I canÆt tell you how much or little Wiegedood sound like any of │
│ them. Sorry. But in my defence, this album has inspired me to check │
│ all their other bands out. What I can say is that Wiegedood have │
│ managed to create a superb album, that is in parts harsh and bleak │
│ (to be expected from a band whose band translates as æcot deathÆ), │
│ like standing facing a gale-force hailstorm, but in other parts │
│ gentle and empowering. │
│ │
│ And I can say that the lack of a bass player (the members felt one │
│ was unnecessary) does not detract from the sound at all. If anything │
│ the lack of a bottom end adds to the icy chill of the songs and │
│ causes them to wash over you with even more power. │
│ │
│ Like the opener, æSvanesangÆ, a 13-minute number whose blastings are │
│ bisected by a hauntingly beautiful, slow guitar piece, which serves │
│ as an eye of the sonic storm. After the middle section the │
│ wall-of-noise guitars and blast beats return, along with SeynaeveÆs │
│ vocals getting ever harsher. But then the song subtly slows, some │
│ and remnants of the quiet section return, as the noise fades. ItÆs │
│ definitely atmospheric. │
│ │
│ Next up is æKwaad BloedÆ, which begins with more hail-in-the-face │
│ relentlessness, but then settles into a widescreen onslaught led by │
│ some brilliantly pummeling double-kick drums, with some soaring │
│ guitar work to back up SeynaeveÆs tortured (in a good way) howls. │
│ The song finishes with Seynaeve fading into the background, one │
│ guitar playing a dirge and an acoustic guitar playing a melodic │
│ vamp. ItÆs a nice touch and it gives the listener (and, no doubt, │
│ the drummer) time to breathe. │
│ │
│ The third song, the title track which translates roughly as ôThe │
│ Dead Are Doing Wellö, begins with a slow stomp, with the guitars │
│ playing an atonic riff which builds nicely for a couple of minutes, │
│ before Seynaeve comes in with his raspy half-scream, accompanied by │
│ a single guitar. It is bleak, but the band have said that although │
│ they realise that their sound (and name) is not exactly celebratory, │
│ they endeavour to convey the idea that no matter how bad things get, │
│ you have to press on and get on with life. Which is a pretty good │
│ way to live, even if it does sound like training advice for an │
│ ultramarathon. │
│ │
│ The albumÆs closer, the mammoth æOnder GaanÆ, begins with more blast │
│ beats, interspersed with a thundering chorus. Then the mood of the │
│ song changes from aggression to introspection by the drums slowing │
│ to half speed, backing up a repeating riff to see the song out, │
│ ending as it does with a spoken piece in Russian, from SeynaeveÆs │
│ former girlfriend, reciting the lyrics in her native language. │
│ │
│ ItÆs a chilling way to end the album, which is alsoà actually IÆll │
│ go back to the blind men story for the final description. The last │
│ of the group got sick under one of the elephantÆs feet. His verdict: │
│ itÆs heavy. │
│ │
│ Support and buy. │
│ │
│ Extra note: Track 4 has Russian in the title, but taggers go │
│ crazy when entering Russian gobbledigook. We made it readable for │
│ you. │
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CATARACT: CLOUDING YOUR VISION