It was with their fourth album, Das Deutsche Album that I discovered Crematory and if I’m being entirely truthful it wasn’t straight away that I got into them. Doing little to enthral me the album spent several months on the shelf with me occasionally going back to it hoping to find in it what I previously hadn’t managed to un-tap. Eventually it happened that I did manage to get into the album, and sought the follow-up, Awake, and that is the end of my Crematorial journey. It’s not that I didn’t enjoy Awake, but I just haven’t since made any conscious effort to follow this band; other than noting from their website that they have barely kept their heads out of the studio with a further 5 albums not counting compilations, live albums and singles, my knowledge of this band is rather patchy.
So rather than fill the reader with a heap of bullshit, I choose to base this review on what I actually know of this band and with that in mind I shall start by saying that, with Infinity, I got pretty much what I was expecting. This is a solid Gothic death metal album that holds very few surprises. ‘Infinity’ instantly demonstrates some melodic death metal guitars thickened out with ethereal keyboard lines that lend an air of melancholy to the sound. The album tends to follow a pattern of verses that come at you with a solid deathly crunch before descending into a slow-paced chorus that ups the melody and allows the Gothic elements to shine through. They do have a knack for penning some catchy choruses, and this is especially true of ‘Out Of Mind’ which plods along at a comfortable pace and has a nice crunch to it.
‘Sense Of Time’ has a really mellowed out vibe to it and mixes in some really wiry synths. The vocals vary between a deep, deathly growl and clean melodic tones and as ever the phrase damp and miserable comes to mind when describing them. ‘Broken Halo’ is a ballad even by their standards, and I do rather like the dejected vocal melodies and the splash of violins within the mix. ‘Where Are You Now’ quickens the pace with some scything modern-thrash guitars and fast drumming and ‘A Story About…’ packs quite a punch with its heavy riffs and gravid vocals.
These are certainly fond of covering 80’s Goth classics, this time it’s Depeche Mode’s ‘Black Celebration’ which they do quite a good job with making it their own taking the atmosphere and the gothic beat of the original while giving it more of a metallic crunch. There is that usual over-produced, clinical sound I can’t help associate with their ex-label Nuclear Blast which is an observation rather than criticism here as it does suit their style. All in all this is a commendable record. As with past efforts this didn’t grab me straight away, though it’s certainly a grower.
http://www.crematory.de/
http://www.myspace.com/crematorymusic
http://www.massacre-records.com/
