The ever reliable Solitude Productions know their doom, and when this one landed on my desk, I was quite convinced before even hearing a note that it was going to be more than worthwhile. The cover, a minimalist piece with a sepia toned lighthouse in the distance generating the bare minimum of light, struggling to penetrate the all-enveloping blackness. It’s a brilliantly understated piece of imagery. ‘Absence’ is Shattered Hope’s first full length album, yet you’d never think so after giving it a listen.
Initially, you would be fooled into thinking that this is pure funeral doom, and certainly the ponderous plodding strains of opening track ‘Amidst Nocturnal Silence’, would tend to back that up. Vocalist Nick operates at the lower, bowel loosening end of the scale, and the rest of the band certainly don’t seem to struggle to keep time. What is apparent though, and what sets it apart from a lot of funeral doom, is the scale and arrangement of the music. Keyboards are used to great effect to create a layered and engrossing atmosphere, the end result sounding like a fusion of Pantheist, Mourning Beloveth and Draconian. The depth of talent is evident on ‘Vital Lie’, an epic track with a lead that draws you in from the first notes. There is real attention to melody paid here, which again is not something you would usually associate with this style of doom, but here it is an absolutely essential element of the ensemble.
The Draconian influence takes hold on ‘Enlighten The Darkness’, the keyboards generating what feels at time like a full orchestral backing, whilst the guitars and drums offer a knowing nod to early My Dying Bride and Paradise Lost, in particular the closing riff which is glorious in its simplicity and effect. The pace lifts, if the mood does not on ‘Yearn’, and after the grandiose songs we have had so far, it’s easy to feel slightly cheated by this sub-four minute foray into the death doom side of things. As it goes, the slight lift in pace does a lot for the overall pacing of the album, giving as it does a slight burst of energy on what would eventually turn out to be an increasingly difficult slog otherwise. After being seduced by ‘A Traitor’s Kiss’, which features guest vocals from Thomas A.G. of Saturnus, we are treated to a ‘Lament in F# Minor’, a cello based instrumental interlude which, whilst certainly not out of place, probably drags on a bit too long before leading straight into the epic doom of ‘The Utter Void’, an 18 minute classic which travels through a number of styles before ultimately fading to a low rumbling towards silence.
Sometimes you just get a feeling about an album before you even listen to it, and this was certainly one of those times. That this is Shattered Hope’s first full length does astound me, and Solitude Productions have bagged themselves a winner here. This is a doom album to lose yourself in. Pop this in the CD player, turn off the lights, lay back and go along for the ride. Great stuff.
http://www.myspace.com/shatteredhopegr
