The Morningside - Letters From The Empty Towns (CD)

melancholic metal, BadMoodMan Music, BadMoodMan Music
600.00 Р
Price in points: 900 points
BMM. 068-14 xn
Out of stock
The new work of the Moscow quartet The Morningside, with all recognizable features of the band, demonstrates the brand new facets of their creativity. This concerns a material itself which is much more aggressive than ever, and how the material is presented to the listener. The arrangements , the sound and the lyrics of the album, and even design the booklet say that Letters From The Empty Towns is not an evident successor to any of the previous works of the group. Album is devoted to the theme of fragmentation, isolation and loneliness, perceived by a metropolis inhabitant, offers a palette of moods: from rage, suicidal despair and black humor to light sadness with a touch of escapism typical for the band works. Starting a voyage from the first to the final, ninth track, you, on the one hand, constantly feel like being inside a submarine called The Morningside, with boards painted in the color of autumn leaves. On the other hand, you understand that this boat can run dangerously close to the territorial waters controlled by the monsters of thrash / death metal, then quietly slip under the keels of the mossy sailing frigates, whose saloons sound like acoustic versions of Pink Floyd with interludes of lute music of the XVII century. In short, this album is equally recommended to old group fans, and those who choose it for the first acquaintance with the work of The Morningside.

Tracklist:
1 Immersion 5:35
2 One Flew (Over The Street) 4:43
3 Deadlock Drive 4:56
4 Sidewalk Shuffle 4:31
5 On The Quayside 5:39
6 The Traffic Guard 4:42
7 The Outside Waltz 2:28
8 Ghost Lights 8:06
9 The Letter 5:40

Artist:
The Morningside
Artist Country:
Russia
Album Year:
2014
Title:
Letters From The Empty Towns
Genre:
melancholic metal
Format:
CD
Type:
CD Album
Package:
Jewel Case
Label:
BadMoodMan Music
Cat Num:
BMM. 068-14
Release Year:
2014
Country Of Manufacture:
Russia
Review
Hell is Open
6/10
07.09.2014

Melodischer Deathmetal kommt meistens ja irgendwo aus Skandinavien, Deutschland holt mittlerweile auch auf. Aber aus Russland, das hat noch Seltenheitswert. "Letters.." ist schon das dritte Album der Moskauer, mir waren sie vorher noch nicht bekannt. Was mir als erstes aufgefallen ist der ziemlich hervorstechende garstige Gesangsstil der irgendwie nicht in die Genrebeschreibung passen will und dem ganzen eher einen schwarzmetallischen Hauch gibt. Dazu passt dann aber die Musik nicht ganz, getriggertes Drumming mit teils proggigen Gitarrenspiel sprechen eher für modernen Deathmetal. Puzzleteile also.....

Author: Alucard
Review
Metal.tm
6/10
04.09.2014

Das nennt man Standortnachteil: THE MORNINGSIDE kommen aus Moskau, frönen aber mit Melancholic- und Atmospheric-Death-Metal Stilrichtungen, die man eher aus Skandinavien kennt. Und sich wünscht, denn, ganz ehrlich: Würden Bands wie INSOMNIUM oder GHOST BRIGADE so gut funktionieren, wenn sie nicht aus Finnland kämen? Wahrscheinlich nicht – aber wer jetzt denkt, dass THE MORNINGSIDE nichts zu bieten hätten, liegt falsch: Die Band hat mit ihren bisherigen Alben nicht enttäuscht, und ihr neues Werk "Letters From These Empty Towns" steht ihnen in nichts nach. Die vier Musiker sind solide Instrumentalisten und gute Songwriter, und somit ist das Album ein recht kurzweiliges Hörvergnügen – oder ein Herbstvergnügen, denn, wie gesagt, die Band steht für Melancholie und gemäßigte Grimmigkeit, eine gediegene Mischung aus Melodien und Death Metal. Und wenn denn die Blätter sich verfärben und von den Bäumen auf die Gräber fallen, dann liefern THE MORNINGSIDE den passenden Soundtrack dafür. Oder zu regennassen Straßen im Schein der Straßenlaternen.

Allerdings ist "Letters From These Empty Towns" bei weitem kein Parforceritt geworden: Die Stücke sind zwar alle gefällig, aber einen richtigen Übersong sucht man vergeblich. Und woran THE MORNINGSIDE noch ein bisschen arbeiten müssen, ist die richtige Mischung zu finden. Zumindest der Anfang mit dem vergleichsweise aggressiven "Immersion" und "One Flew (Over The Street)" ist gewöhnungsbedürftig – das klingt teilweise so, als hätten die Gitarristen gerade CARCASS gehört und wollten auch das miteinfließen lassen. Ansonsten bietet "Letters From These Empty Towns" aber eine runde Mischung aus den genannten Bands, die auch, wie in "Deadlock Drive", bei PARADISE LOST nicht Halt macht.

Author: Eckart Maronde
Review
The Metal Observer
6.5/10
01.08.2014

Somewhat ironically, The Morningside’s ongoing quest for an identity all their own has seen them continuously shuffling down different musical avenues already well-trodden by a host of other acts, whether it’s the Katatonia-ish bleakness of The Wind, The Trees and the Shadows of the Past, the Agallochian bent of Moving Crosscurrents of Time or the more Prog Rock-like influence that started creeping into the mix on the TreeLogia EP. Their genre-hopping hasn’t endowed them with a whole lot of originality but here’s the kicker – these Muscovites, though somewhat schizophrenic in their pursuit of identity, are utterly adept at incorporating and emulating a wide array of styles and sounds, and doing so with so much conviction that one cannot help but tag along for the ride. I’d even go so far as to say that The Wind, The Trees and the Shadows of the Past is one of the very best Brave Murder Day-inspired pieces of musical expression this side of Daylight Dies’ Dismantling Devotion. With that in mind, let’s dive right into Letters from the Empty Towns.

Keeping with tradition, the guys have yet again latched on to a different style here, incorporating liberal doses of melodic death metal into their core doom/death style, with the product as a whole showcasing what is easily the most professional production job they’ve ever had. Now, I’m not one to begrudge the band’s decision to keep tinkering with their sound – that is simply how they roll – but in this particular instance I cannot help but feel that the Gothenburg elements ended up brightening, rather than broadening, their horizons. This essentially negates the sweeping melancholy that has always been a key component of the Morningside oeuvre. Whereas bands like Insomnium and Omnium Gatherum excel at this melodic death/doom style, The Morningside’s over-reliance on wispy melodies end up undermining the emotional punch of the songs.

“Sidewalk Shuffle” and “The Traffic Guard” are the main offenders in this regard, the stock In Flames/Nightrage riffs providing poor counterpoint to the underlying Paradise Lost style melodies (though it has to be said that the latter song starts getting it right around the 3:33 mark, when the sprightly melodies and sonorous dissonance finally start ‘clicking’). Elsewhere, “Deadlock Drive” is unadulterated Paradise Lost worship (that works), while “On the Quayside” and “Ghost Lights” see the band dipping their sonic brushes, as it were, in grey and…grey. Tracks like these are perfect for those dreary overcast days. They obviously still have what it takes to write emotionally resonant music and this just makes the inclusion of the aforementioned Gothenburg-lite elements so much more frustrating, and don’t even get me started on “Immersion,” a haphazard attempt at Meshuggah’s angular rhythms that kicks off the album in the most awkward of ways. All things considered, Letters from the Empty Towns is a palatable, if unremarkable, album that is well played and well produced but ultimately too disconcerting in terms of tone and flow.

Author: Neil Pretorius
Review
Gorgers Metall
01.07.2014

The Morningside har ikke imponert meg nevneverdig med sine tidligere skiver, som var preget av saktmodig, progressiv death/doom med et snillt post-preg og en usunn interesse for trжr. Denne gangen har de fire russerne lagt inn en litt hшyere gir, og framstеr nе som et lett progressivt, melodisk death/doom-band. Kanskje ikke store forskjellen pе papiret, men for meg som lytter er det mye mer interessant е lytte til denne skiva enn tildligere stшvsamlere. Det er fortsatt ikke veldig aggressive saker karene byr pе, men musikken har litt mer trшkk og vokalen er kvassere, mer i black-gata. Den brukes dessuten flittigere, da tidligere verk har hatt sе lite vokal at det grenset mot instrumentalmusikk. I tillegg kan mye flott gitarspill nevnes.
To skritt i riktig retning for The Morningside, og hшres beskrivelsen fristende ut sе sjekk ut bandet. Digital- versjonen pе bandcamp er til og med "nevn din pris".
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