(Dynamic Arts)
Total Time: 50:30
It is of great pleasure to meet with the latest musical thoughts of some bands, whose past achievements were influential enough to be regarded as innovative and “important” for the evolvement of the genre they serve…
It is one of these small moments when you rush to the CD player with agony and expectations…
SILENTIVM is a great band. Being around since 1995 these Finish ones had served the atmospheric/gothic metal scene with dignity and honesty through all these years, leaving behind some acclaimed “diamonds” such as “Infinita Plungo Vulnera”(1999), “Altum”(2001) and the theatrical “Sufferion”(2003).
After “Seductia” in 2006, the band returns now with a more “modernized” album, leaving the atmospheric underground unique sound it had achieved the past years, following more secure and commercially driven paths and resulting in a “Nightwish”-“Epica” like sound…
The production regarding the sound is perfect; however there are many objections on the entire concept, meaning that with “Amortean” the band seems to change musical directions to other places. Is in inevitable to make some comparisons to their previous attempts, underlining here the almost complete absence of the characteristic male vocals acting complementary to the female ones in the past, leaving Riina’s voice do the trick…although her voice is beautiful there is a feeling in the air that something is missing!
As far as the songwriting is concerned, there are some very good moments in here, as also there are some tracks lacking inspiration…The album consists of 9 tracks becoming better as time goes by…
In general SILENTIVM decided to adopt many modern elements, changing their style to become something different from what they used to be. To be honest, technically the outcome provides many inspired musical ideas but in a way it follows the successful recipe of the great female fronted bands of our era.
Expecting something different from SILENTIVM and in an attempt to free the mind from the past I must admit that their new attempt is a nice album in general, addressed to a wider range of fans, which will be satisfied by the outcome. On the contrary, I doubt if “Amortean” has the spirit to satisfy the band’s older fans…
