swallow the sun new moon

Released: 04 November 2009 Label: Spinefarm

Here I was, blissfully unaware of any albums by Swallow the Sun. I don't know how I missed them, given the number of my friends listening to them, but I did. Somehow, I succeeded in missing three albums and only got to hear the fourth because "she who hassles for reviews" sent it on to me. I hadn't even seen them live, despite being at festivals when they played - the lure of alcohol had obviously become too great and I had wandered off in search of liquid sustenance.

So, what do we have here?

In short, it's a combination of one of my favourite genres - melodic death- with one of my least favourite - doom. An eclectic mix of two rather disparate subgenres, which gives the band the potential to invent something uniquely interesting. It could also go horribly wrong, due to the differences between the styles.

Which of these two is it?

To be honest, it's neither - when the music on the album is inspirational, it's mostly that way because it is mired within one of the component genres rather than because of the combination. The album itself is well written, has great production and will no doubt interest those who have already 'caught the bug'. However, I don't think it manages to break through the wall between its component parts enough to convert people, especially those with a lack of interest in one of the components.

Truth be told, I have been engaged in a debate with friends about the album and so far they have deemed me to be completely wrong! So, I'm going to keep on listening to see if I can get into the band. Sadly, I have so much to listen to these days that Swallow the Sun may lose out to the latest CD through the letterbox all too often.

Perhaps a gig or two will help, if I can just stay away from the bar.


by Kev McCarthy