What would be really welcome at the moment is a nice trip to sunny old Portugal, well one can but dream. Actually according to its greatest metal musical export perhaps things are not quite so bright as it is ‘Night Eternal’ on their new album but where there is darkness there is hope (sorry even made myself wince with that one). I thought 2006 album Memorial was the dog’s nads. The power, energy and beautiful aggression behind it made it into my top ten albums of the year. Quite honestly the re-working of their ‘Under Satanae’ material of last year would have probably done so too if it had been an album of new stuff. Moonspell had got their spark back since a somewhat lacklustre mid-period and so I was rather looking forward to this one.
I have to say that on first impressions ‘Night Eternal’ did not have quite such an impact on me and I thought it should have done, especially due to the somewhat easily accessible 44 minute running time (different versions of the full release include double digipack with extra songs and Wacken DVD performance, so don’t feel short changed). However on putting this down for a week (somewhat of a rare thing to be able to do when reviewing) and picking it up again I was blown away all over again and feel that perhaps I was being a little bit hasty in my judgement.
An austere and biblical sounding narration opens up ‘At Tragic Heights.’ Wailing female vocals sound like they are from a Middle Eastern vision of the apocalypse. Female backing vocals are provided here by ‘The Crystal Mountain Singers’ including Carmen Simões (Ava Inferi) who was so beguiling on Under Satanae. It is only when the full weight of the song ploughs in that you notice just what a punch the powerful Tue Madsen production has behind it. The formidable vocals hone in at you like a cornered mountain lion and Mike Gaspar’s drumming is the anchor driving things solidly along whilst the orchestration battles around it.
Adding atmosphere with shimmering guitar lines and mystical keyboard weaves the title track unveils like a flower blooming and letting out a poisonous stench. Guitar solos spiral away and the track breathes slightly but on the whole it flexes muscles and punishes the listener with the richness of ideas behind it. The heart of darkness is unleashed on ‘Shadow Sun’ which after a slow burn literally rages into action with a pounding chorus, which is going to blister live. It is here that I start to question the lyrical approach and the concept of the album (which I cannot find online) it strikes as being about mankind’s inevitable downfall whether it be by religion or damage to the ecology it is evident that it is going to be due to mans own very capable hand and the darkness will spread across the land, shutting light out for ever. “Life Is Meaningless” come the words sounding like they have escaped from a Type O number but summing this all up.
‘Scorpion Flower’ by contrast is a beautiful swooning number with the unmistakeable enhancement vocally, courtesy of Anneke van Giersbergen who seems to be popping up all over the place since she left The Gathering. Pretty much every number here packs a punch and has an identity and there is not an ounce of fat on the album, no filler in the slightest, which is something I have found the band suffering from in the past. Flowing from a heavyset raggedness to moments of mournful sadness and lament such as on ‘Dreamless (Lucifer And Lilith)’ this is pretty much perfectly textured. By the time we reach the climax (which really is climatic) ‘First Light’ has the sound of what may well be lightning cast down from heaven so perhaps it could well be that nuclear end of the earth.
Although even whilst writing this review I keep on thinking that although an excellent and very strong album I don’t think it is quite up to the fortuitous standards of Memorial. Still the proof really is how this stands up in the longevity stakes and I may still be playing this like crazy in the winter, time will tell. Hopefully we may all be around still to find out.
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