This post was originally published on this site
Summer is ending. Before long, the leaves will start to turn and the long nights will settle in. As nature begins its slumber and the spooky season approaches, fans of all things otherworldly are preparing for the best time of year. Good thing BLACKBRIAR are back to provide the perfect soundtrack. The Dutch metallers deal in the sort of alternative metal that leans epic in scope and aesthetically gothic. Theirs is a world of fairytales and literary fiction, there are spectres and odes to communicating through flowers. If English was your favourite class at school, it doesn’t get much better than this.
On A Thousand Little Deaths, their third full-length, the band tweak and fine-tune their dark lullaby formula without reinventing their wheel. Released as the record’s first single back in November, Floriography could hardly be mistaken for anyone else. Everything’s here: a melodramatic hook, a chunky power chord accompaniment, all while Zora Cock’s voice glides over the top like a lament. Not to mention, the track arrived accompanied by a video filled with strewn pages of sheet music and secret messages revealed by candlelight. BLACKBRIAR might be metal’s foremost dark academia band, and across ten songs, that immersion only grows. Expect ouija boards and buried lovers in the garden.
It must be noted how integral Zora Cock is to the band’s rising star and in setting them apart from their peers. One doesn’t have to be a talented singer to make it in metal; indeed, many succeed in spite of their vocal limitations, carried by their attitude and swagger instead. But BLACKBRIAR’s music soars because of her melodies, first of all, elevated further by her virtuoso flourishes which transform everything here into something special. Hear how her voice flutters as she sings ‘Floriography‘ before deftly diving into a whisper. The musical theatre level of drama to how she delivers ‘Aurora pricked her finger’ on opener Bluebeard’s Chamber. The way she deploys vibrato, just for a second, in wordy passages of The Catastrophe That Is Us. As a band, BLACKBRIAR constructs a canvas for her to come along and elevate the material every time. She is a rare talent, and her part in helping the band carve out a space in the musical landscape cannot be understated.
When A Dark Euphony dropped two years ago, it was a major announcement of a key new band in the scene. A Thousand Little Deaths doesn’t benefit from that same level of shock, but nor does it drop the ball. There is clear confidence in the material here, with five of the record’s tracks released as singles ahead of its release. The other half is nothing to be sniffed at either, with the creeping My Lonely Crusade bringing some of the record’s heaviest moods – and a classic guitar solo to boot – while Green Light Across The Bay finds inspiration in The Great Gatsby, the song’s sweeping synths adding to its storytelling vibe.
Their third album in five years, A Thousand Little Deaths ought to keep BLACKBRIAR on their upward trajectory, further cementing themselves as the dark academia metal band of the moment. If the juxtaposition of playful melodies with sinister undertones is your bag, then BLACKBRIAR continue to be the band for you. Best listened to by lanternlight on a stormy night.
Rating: 8/10
A Thousand Little Deaths is out now via Nuclear Blast.
Like BLACKBRIAR on Facebook.
The post ALBUM REVIEW: A Thousand Little Deaths – Blackbriar appeared first on Distorted Sound Magazine.
