Comrade at arms and our esteemed editor Luci Herbert had this album to review for Zero Tolerance magazine, so I inadvertently heard it several times and found that I really enjoyed it. So when it popped through my letterbox for an MTUK review it was like greeting an old friend and I could not wait to plonk it on the stereo and get reacquainted with it. The group are from the Fens area of the UK and take their name from a Tolkien Middle Earth city. This is their second album following on from 2009 release ‘Escaping The Abyss’ one I must profess to wanting to hear and see how they have developed. The quartet appear to on the whole not be involved in any other groups apart from James Last who has helped out live duties drumming with the likes of Imperial Vengeance and Korvus.
The first thing that strikes about this album is how expertly it is played. The band sound like they have been established musicians for years and have really developed their craft. One thing that does strike and has to be mentioned is the rich guitar sound which twists and turns in a way very reminiscent of Opeth. Quite honestly with that bands latest release it is not such a bad thing that we do have the odd group who partly keeps their former essence alive and fans not liking the Swedes new progressive approach would do themselves no ill favour by passing it by and picking this album up instead.
We start with ‘Rogue’ gently and harmoniously ebbing in with some female vocals (I believe the multi talented Elle Torre) liltingly accompanying the acoustic strum. Male vocals enter the picture and the folk etched guitars pick up the pace before the rest of the instrumentation joins in. The listener is instantly mesmerised but gets a violent awakening as gruff vocals roar out and the full stormy weight of the track hones in. There is a heavily progressive feeling behind this and the song does dash off all over the place but does so with fluidity and is far from up its own arse or an exercise in showing off. This is not one of those albums that can be reviewed track by track telling you every nuance and intricacy of each song, the word count would be off the scale and quite honestly this is music that needs to be experienced and listened to rather than summed up by mere words. The is great depth of emotion, skill and maturity to be found within this hours worth of music. The only downside is that I cannot help but keep comparing it to the likes of Blackwater Park but having said that it gives this classic album a real run for its money.
With a splash of retro and organic sounding keyboards and ever changing guitar harmonies, this is a varied listen that keeps you on your toes for the duration of its running time. The clean and growled vocal changes from the groups two singers Greg Chivers and Sam Austen help add the variety and paint textures of light and dark admirably. Tracks have no problems stretching to ten minutes in length and with the two part title track this is a seriously epic listen. It is also one that you need to give your time and attention to and it is one that you want to ensure you have an uninterrupted hour to get the most out of it, when you do you will be richly rewarded.
For me ‘The Death Of A Rose’ has come pretty much out of nowhere, but some of the best albums and discoveries come that way and this is a serious contender for hitting my albums of the year list; something a certain bunch of Swedes have no chance of achieving. In closing, check this out now, it is a rose that has bloomed and will not be wilting for some time to come.
http://www.fornostarnor.com
http://www.myspace.com/fornostarnor
Pete Woods
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