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Memory Garden

Carnage Carnival

Written by: PP on 07/11/2008 19:20:48

Melodic doom metal? Now I've honestly heard every possible way that generic, cliché, boring power metal can be twisted to sound like something cool and exciting. Because that's exactly what Memory Garden are not, quite the contrary in fact. Popping in their new album "Carnage Carnival" wouldn't be such a tiresome affair if I hadn't already gone through about three or four dozen similar albums this year, each desperately trying to carve into their own unique niché, whether through the addition of thrashier elements, pure heavy metal grandeur, or just a distant doom metal vibe which is the case here (although to argue there to be any doom metal in "Carnage Carnival" is pretty questionable on most tracks). But the problem is that I have, and so have the rest of the people who're interested in the dreaded genre where words 'epic' and 'colossal' are often in the spotlight without success in either.

There's really no point in extending the torture any further, and a short but sweet execution will take Memory Garden away from their misery: This is generic power metal/heavy metal hybrid with no striking element to distinguish it from its peers. The instrumentals and vocals might be well executed, but really, it doesn't matter when they sound exactly the same as every single band appearing in their Last.FM "Similar Artists" list.

Download: Nameless
For the fans of: Candlemass, Solitude Aeturnus
Listen: Myspace

Release date 15.09.2008
Vic Records