Artist: Majestic Downfall
Title: Temple Of Guilt
Type: Album
Label: My Kingdom Music
Ah, the mournful, reflective tones of emotional death/doom. Of course, there is something about the rainy, miserable northern European nations like Britain, Finland or Russia that causes these bands to proliferate, but Majestic Downfall (an outfit featuring Jacobo, he of one-man thrash outfit ‘Ticket To Hell’) hail from Mexico. I suppose the much talked about swine flu might make someone a bit miserable, and no doubt the ongoing raging drugs wars might also invoke some upset. This is their first full lengther, five tracks weighing in at over 50 minutes of downbeat, depressive music...
Happily, unlike the vast majority of their doom/death peers, Majestic Downfall haven't been drinking solely from the well of My Dying Bride. Much as I like that particular seminal outfit, hearing the umpteenth Russian copyists in a month was starting to get a trifle tedious. These gloomy sods sit much closer to the early Katatonia ouevre, somewhere around the ‘Brave Murder Day’ era, with strong hints (particularly in the guitar tone and guitar solos) of Paradise Lost circa ‘Shades of God’. Opener ‘Temple of Guilt’ serves as a true statement of intent, with tolling clean guitars, sorrow-laden hoarse vocals and tender, delicately played piano. ‘Unexpected’ follows, with guitar melodies so delicious you could just pluck them from out of the air and eat them whole. ‘Swallow: Pride’ has a peculiar, yet effective, lyrical stance, managing to rescue hope from within the suffocating, claustrophobic feelings of despair. It's hard not to invest some emotional empathy with lines such as, ‘I'm not the strongest link / In fact I am a tragedy / But rise, rise, I am behind you’. ‘Failure’, is as close to an anthem as it is possible to get from this brand of personal, evocative metal, while closer ‘Bleeding Sun’ manages to salvage some slender sliver of hope in the downcast riffing and powerful drumming.
Production wise, this is right on the button, with a clear, punchy sound characterised by the guitar tones which vary between clean, picked melodies and raw, fuzz-laden chords. The song writing is similarly accomplished, with not the merest hint of filler to be found and an obvious ear for developing dynamism and tone within each track. As with all doom/death, this isn't the soundtrack to a metal party, but an album best savoured alone. Your lace hanky to weep into is optional. A good, solid album then, and some original touches in a genre that was starting to wear me out.
http://www.myspace.com/majesticdownfall
Chris Davison
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