Rockfreaks.net

Anata

The Conductor´s Departure

Written by: ASH on 01/07/2006 18:37:40

Oh how I envy you, fellow staff members and readers of Rockfreaks.net, having fun at Roskilde and leaving me with a single album and weeped tears of jealousy. I'll just crawl back into my chamber and practice playing "Phantom of the Opera" on my gigantic pipe organ while telling emotional and introspective stories to my furry friends, the rats of the underground. Nevertheless, I've still got Miray here, though not in the chambers I mentioned just earlier, so it's not lonely at all. And to all of you who also didn't make it to Roskilde 2006, have fun reading yet another review.

All right, enough melancholic sadness, on with swedish Anata's newest death-metal release; "The Conductor's Departure". Bringing destructive and growling vocals accompanied with both intensive guitar riff furies and melodic fill-ins to its fullest, Anata undoubtedly wants to stand their ground. I get their point of that they don't want to sound like In Flames but hearing that they don't resemble anything similar to the music of In Flames that point seems just...unnecessary?

"The Conductor's Departure" features some great expressions through all of the band's instruments, drums are heartpounding as always, the bass guitar is producing some nice atmosphere in most tracks, but the vocals...I know, this IS death-metal mixed with thrash and doom genres, so Fredrik Schälen is in his best rights to give out some demonic growling, but as a matter of fact, Schälen's choice of song style and his voice doesn't match the album at all. To me, it makes even the other instruments sound bad, since they have to follow his voice on most tracks like on the fifth track "Cold Heart Forged In Hell", where you'd rather take out the album, smash it, cook it, and then feed it to someone you really dislike. 4 minutes and 59 seconds of pure, irritating...no need to describe this any further.

Sadly, it's like this on the majority of this ten track long album, but for the very first time, I really liked a track without vocals. "Children's Laughter", the ninth track of the album had no vocals whatsoever, just a great instrumental oasis where you can lean back and get a feel of their real sound. Add some good lyrics, scrap the out of place growling and yeah, you'll get closer to In Flames, but you'll still be far away. I won't recommend "The Conductor's Departure" to other than close fans of Anata, since you really have to be devoted if you like any other track's than "Children's Laughter". But if you like impressive instrumental skills and have the natural gift of deafening the voice of Schälen then be their guest and purchase their latest release.

Download: "Children's Laughter
For the fans of: Necrophagist, Meshuggah
Listen: N/A

Release date 26.06.2006
Wicked World
Provided by Target ApS