Doom:VS - Earthless (CD)

Review
Two Metal Guys Reviews
07.06.2014

For someone who loves doom metal as much as I do, it's been a surprisingly long time since I've covered a top notch doom record. Fortunately today I have the opportunity, nay, blessing, to tell you guys about the almighty destruction of Doom:VS's new record Earthless. Replete with rich orchestration, very guttural growls, and some artsy acoustic passages, it's pretty clear that Doom:VS are set to rise above the challenge of their rivals and become true doom lords. 10 years worth of releases are finally paying off for a seminal Swedish doom band.

One of my favorite aspects of Earthless is the melodic guitar lines which nicely compliment colossal riffs in songs like A Quietly Forming Collapse. This one man project really gives us a view inside the head of Johan Ericson, that despite the bleakness there can be some light. His epic compositions drag in the listener and often tear hearts to shreds. The song structures here are unique and refreshing, they often make use of contrast between a heavier doom metal crush, and more laid back and refined parts that use simpler orchestration. The voice overs add a lot of flavor to the tracks and give a whole new layer of depth to Earthless, making it worth many a spin.

Doom:VS has once again proven that Johan Ericson really understands what doom metal is all about. His guttural triumphs are not the sort that normal people might relate too, but for those of us who find ascension in the almighty darkness of doom metal, this is what we need to hear. Johan Ericson speaks from the heart, rubbing a part of his soul onto yours, opening up in an extremely personal way and showing the eternal might of Swedish doom metal. So go out, purchase Earthless and turn it all the way up as you fall into pure doom metal oblivion.

Review
The Pit of the Damned
8/10
26.08.2014

Sono passati parecchi anni da quando recensii 'Aeternum Vale', album di debutto di Johan Ericson e dei suoi Doom:Vs, side project dei doomsters svedesi Draconian. Era il 2006, e il polistrumentista scandinavo si proponeva di esplorare il lato più buio e straziato del proprio animo. Otto anni più tardi, eccoci qui a godere del terzo lavoro del poliedrico musicista, dal semplice ed esplicativo titolo 'Earthless', la perfetta colonna sonora atta a dipingere la natura mortale della condizione umana. Il mastermind nordico questa volta non percorre il suo cammino in solitario, ma è coadiuvato alle vocals da Thomas A.G., vocalist dei Saturnus. Mettete pertanto insieme il talento di due mostri sacri della scena doom malinconica e, fatto banalmente 2+2, otterrete un album di classe che certo non sprizzerà gioia dai suoi solchi, un lavoro all'insegna della disperazione più totale, narrato in sei lunghi pezzi, in cui il death doom di Johan tende in alcuni momenti a travalicare il confine del funeral. Il growling profondo e peculiare di Thomas, unito alle splendide melodie di Johan non possono che garantire un risultato complessivo impeccabile, che vede le sue punte di diamante nella deprimente "A Quietly Forming Collapse", song dalle ritmiche tanto flemmatiche quanto opprimenti, che vive di deliziosi squarci di onnipresente atrabile umor nero, affidato alla sei corde di Mr. Ericson. Inevitabili gli echi che si rifanno ai primissimi My Dying Bride (un must per i fan del genere) nelle linee di chitarra di "The Dead Swan of the Woods", cosi come il raro dualismo vocale tra la catacombale timbrica del bravo vocalist danese e i rari passaggi sussurrati del chitarrista svedese. Ma il mio pezzo preferito alla fine sarà "Oceans of Despair", song dalle movenze delicate, con una certa alternanza a livello vocale, tra growl, clean, sussurrato e urlato, ma sempre contraddistinta da commoventi linee di chitarra. Quella dei Doom:Vs continua ad essere musica emozionale, che vive di pause, scariche elettriche, attimi struggenti e crepuscolari, frangenti che si annidano toccanti il nostro io interiore, luci soffuse, tenebre, chiari e scuri, un moto che entra dentro e non ci lascia più. Ben tornati.

Author: Francesco Scarci

Review
Femforgacs
9/10
26.08.2014

Kár lenne tagadnom, hogy az egyszemélyes formációk nyomon követésére nagyobb hangsúlyt fektetek, mint a klasszikus zenekarokéra. Ez több okból eredeztethető. Egyrészt amikor például az iskolában tesióra volt, mindig az egyéni sportokat választottam, sosem álltam be focizni, inkább elmentünk tengózni a hozzám hasonlókkal. A személyes kitérőért elnézést, következzen a valódi ok: az egyszemélyes zenekarokban egy ember érzéseit élhetem át, biztos lehetek benne, hogy nem volt a témák megalkotása közben próbatermi háború, illetve nem kell azon töprengjek, hogy a csapat mely tagja a domináns, és kik a kiszolgálószemélyzet. Emellett az sem elhanyagolható, hogy egy szólóproject élőben nem működhet (esetleg vendégzenészekkel), így a misztikum ködébe burkolózva alkot az entitás, a zene van előtérben, nem az exibicionizmus. Vagy legalább is az exibicionizmus azon formája, amit egészségesnek tartok, ha zenéről van szó.
A Doom:VS Johan Ericson egyszemélyes utazása. A Draconianból ismerhetik egyesek az urat, annak a társaságnak az alapító tagja. Azon bandát nem követtem nyomon, így nincs összehasonlítási alapom...

Jelen projectben nem születnek új képletek, nincs forradalmi hangulat, szimplán csak azt veszem észre, hogy a szerző nagyon érzi az egységet, a hangszerek bámulatosan támasztják egymást, és a hangsúlyt az összhangzatra teszi. Az egyszerűsége megható, ahogyan a hangulata is. A funeral doom talán az egyik legkevésbé variálható műfaj, mivel ha variáljuk, akkor már önkéntelenül hozzá kell tegyünk valami egyéb előtagot a kategóriához. Ericson azonban megtekeri a dolgot, mert nem lép ki a kategóriai korlátok mögül, egyszerűen csak hihetetlen érzékkel kavarja a kondért, nagyszerű időérzékkel adagolja a témákat ahhoz, hogy a végeredmény egy olyan sablon étel legyen, amit egyszerűen nem lehet nem szeretni. Természetesen a szakácsművészete célzott, egy adott körnek készül a táp. Mikor úgy érezném, hogy ááá... nem is olyan izgalmas ez, máris belép valami ámulatba ejtő téma, ami ismétlem, nem a rendhagyóságával kábít, csak egyszerűen nagyon jó hallgatni. Az egész lemez emelkedett az elejétől a végéig. Talán az ének az, amin lehetett volna még töprengeni, mivel túl sok változatosságot nem ad ez a hörgés.
Ezt a Saturnus torok Thomas Akim Grønbæk Jensen prezentálja, így sérül egy kicsit az egyszemélyes hadsereg státusz...
Azért annyira nem zavaró a vokális megoldások egyhangúsága, mivel helyette a zene hömpölyög, hol melegen és szépen, hol bizarr mód gonoszul. Meg a Oceans of Despair című tételben hallunk dallamokat is. Szerintem szerencsésebb lett volna hamarabb elsütni ezt az eszközt.

Egy dolog nem nagyon van a Doom:VS zenéjében: disszonancia. Ezt nem hiányként éljük viszont meg, hanem puszta tényként. Teljesen harmonikus a rendszer, még a bizarrságában is szabályos. Tanult zenészre jellemző komponálást hallani, ami szabályosságával egy kicsit unalmas is tud lenni, de ez jellemző a Solitude kiadványokra alapból. Viszont ugyanígy jellemző a ruszki kiadóra az igényesség is. A megszólalás tökéletes, szinte már túl jó, és a kiadvány külső megjelenésébe sem tudnék belekötni.
A Hangpróbán már szerepelt ez az anyag, és akkor nagyon funeral doomster hangulatomban lehettem, mert majdnem tízet adtam rá, most viszont valamelyest csökkent az ingerem erre a zenére, így egy barátságos kilencesben megállapodnék magammal... Aki kezdő funeral doom hallgató (szinte még én is), azoknak viszont tudom ajánlani, mivel pont azokkal az elemekkel ismerteti össze az embert, amik a műfaj leginkább jellegzetes vonásai.

Author: Nagaarum

Review
Doom-Metal.com
7.5/10
17.08.2014

Last time we had to wait six years for a new Saturnus release. The wait is considerably shorter this time, however: only two years after 2012’s Saturn in Ascension, their new album Earthless is now out on Solitude Productions, featuring six long songs similar in style to the previous record. Fans of the long-standing Danish band will recognise their trademark melodic lead guitars, laid-back rhythms and overall doomy, yet pleasant feel right away and feel comfortable enough with the new compositions – they offer no experiments or surprises, but no major disappointments, either. The only thing that might bother some is the absence of the traditional acoustic track and the reduced amount of calm interludes. Some sections are slightly more pounding than usual, and both the third and fourth track start with an unusually dark and crushing riff which can be seen as a vague sign of evolution if we are generous. Finally, Johan Ericson contributed some solid clean guest vocals to the last two songs which work well within the context (the vocal melody on “Oceans of Despair” particularly sticks out). Other than that, though, little can be said about this album. It offers Melodic Death Doom which, unfortunately, is absolutely predictable both in style and structure.

How can I deal with a release from such a big name (by Doom standards) in just a single paragraph, you ask, especially considering my tendency to write long reviews? Hold on a second, something isn’t right here! Let me start again.

Have you ever heard of Doom:VS? If so, have you actually listened to the music, or did the strange name put you off? Doom:VS is the solo project of Johan Ericson, the guitarist and main songwriter in Draconian, and he has made quite a name for himself: his two full-length albums under this moniker, albeit fairly unimaginative, were mostly well-received due to his good songwriting abilities. But his project has never had much of a distinct identity of its own (nor does he seem to have had such aspirations to begin with), relying on the tried formula of Melodic Death Doom and steering clear of adventurous ideas. As you may have guessed from the opening paragraph, though, on Earthless he has given up every last ounce of individuality. Instead, he chose to bluntly copy what seems to be his great idol, Saturnus, even inviting Thomas A.G. Jensen to record the main vocals.

And it is almost frightening how well Ericson succeeds in imitating the sound of their later releases: if somebody had played the album to me and presented it as the new Saturnus, not a single doubt would have entered my mind. Even Ericson’s own clean voice has been reduced to the two short aforementioned appearances – quite a radical step considering that they were used very regularly on his previous output, Dead Words Speak (which, funnily enough, was released six years ago – sound familiar?). The slightly more apocalyptic undertones of some of his earlier compositions only reappear here in the form of the two opening riffs, also mentioned above. None of the remaining riffs and lead guitar lines would have felt out of place at all on a Saturnus album, and even the song structures (if somewhat more simplistic) are hardly any different, especially with Jensen’s vocals following the dynamics. In short, Earthless is a textbook example of plagiarism of the highest calibre, and it seems almost ironic that Jensen actually participated in it, which seems to suggest that he does not mind. On top of it all, this development is likely to disappoint those Doom:VS fans who were expecting the project to continue in a similar vein to the earlier releases.

So why am I still giving this album a fairly high rating? Simple: it is a cool would-be Saturnus album! The production is crisp and heavy, the atmosphere works perfectly and the songs are well thought-out. Songwriting-wise, I actually find this material much more compelling than anything on the earlier Doom:VS releases, and the songs benefit from the absence of the clean voice which has always been a disputable factor at best, though some may value it nonetheless. The guitar arrangements in particular are definitely more memorable than those Ericson has previously composed for this project. It is almost paradoxical that despite this, the album as a whole, on the other hand, is still quite forgettable: it lacks any and all features that stand out, where Saturnus at least employ their acoustic moments to great effect and Draconian (whose lead guitars also borrow a lot from the Danes) employ more interesting contrasts and vocal arrangements. Even the artwork looks like something we have seen a million times before, and the lyrics, too, littered as they are with unnecessary grammatical mistakes, are completely by-the-book: “My hands soaked with blood / from the burial of my heart”. How about a handkerchief? Everything about Earthless feels constructed: it is Doom for the sake of being Doom and not because of a need to express something that cannot be conveyed by other stylistic means. In short, nobody really needs this album, but many will enjoy it nonetheless. If you cannot get enough of this particular branch of Doom and can forgive the plagiarism, you will not regret giving it a listen. “A Quietly Forming Collapse”, to me, is the clear highlight, followed by the mellower “Oceans of Despair”.

Author: Dominik Sonders

Review
Terra Relicta
8.5/10
07.08.2014

Johan Ericson is back with his project Doom:VS, rejoice lovers of all things doom! It's not a secret that the new album from this multi talented musician and producer, known mostly because beign a part of gothic/doom band Draconian, was one of the most anticipated releases in the doom scene this year. You must know that it passed six years since the release of grandiose album, Dead Words Speak, considered by many as a true masterpiece of the genre. Now, there's even more bleakness, melody, crushing riffs and rich atmosphere than before. Six tracks on Earthless are nothing but an obscure ride into the most dreadful, yet sinister and provocative places your imaginatin can invoke. All the pieces form an unity that must be consumed in your most solitary moments to get a proper effect.Taking a step further from the previous album, Dead Words Speak, leaving behind the funeral doom sound almost completely, this new release holds an imense power and kind of unpretentious dynamics. Maybe it wouldn't be unfair to say that at some point it sounds just like a mix between Draconian and later Saturnus (note that Thomas A.G. Nielsen is responsible for the growls on this record), but the point is in how it's executed. Slow paced melodic guitar layers, some nice crescendos, simply great leads, overtaken by guttural vocals, some clean singing and those typical spoken parts that form such a dramatic experience that must be necessary to make a doom release bereable also for those not really devoted into the genre. Doom:VS with Earthless actually combine the most melancholic gothic metal with doom and death metal, nothing really that new, but once you hear those lush melodies and dense melancholic atmospheres you must be left breathless.Earthless gets its peak in soul consuming melancholic masterpiece "Oceans Of Despair", where melodious and bleak driving guitars, at some point have even a bit of similarity with early Paradise Lost, and brutal vocals that twice get intertwined with a memorable clean singing refrain must retrieve the incurable sadness that was hidden deep inside of each one who sees the world damaged as it really is. Heavy drum kicks are giving the necessary callousness to complete the picture thus showing how helpless we are by punishing with each hit. There are still a lot of things left to discover in those six epic tracks if you just dare to give it a chance to be overtaken by this dark sonic emotional cataclysm. In top of all that the album comes with a very well done eerie artwork and production that gives even more depth to the whole thing. Yes, Johan Ericson plus Thomas A.G. Nielsen is a winning combination, maybe it will be for somebody too much similar in atmosphere to Saturnus's last album Saturn In Ascension mixed with Draconian's Turning Season Within, but nevertheless, believe me, is much more than just that.So the only question after this experience remains: "How far can my voice reach? Beyond the stars? Will dusk bring hope or devour me?"

Author: T.V.