Nuclear Blast
2010
1. Introduction/Sitra Ahra
2. Kings Of Edom
3. Unguentum Sabbati
4. Land Of Canaan
5. Hellequin
6. 2012
7. Cú Chulainn
8. Kali Yuga, Pt. 3
9. The Shells Are Open
10. Din
11. After The Inquisition: Children Of The Stone
Therion are one of those bands among the heap who are pretty good, have their own sound, but have never quite amazed/impressed me. Their sound is decent and fairly ambitious with the band's larger than life operatics, but they've yet to do that one album for me... You know the one. The one that grabs you and never lets go. That being said I think they've put out some pretty decent music. The last one didn't do much for me, but you never know what a new album will bring.
On this one my complaint is almost the opposite of the last album. On Gothic Kabbalah I felt like Therion were going too traditional without rich soundscapes and letting the operatics flow. Strangely, on Sitra Ahra the opposite seems to be the case as the operatics are stepped up, but often in a meandering way that quite frankly bores me. The guitar never seems to drive these songs home and I find myself stuck in the middle of atmosphere that never really builds to anything. Rarely do both the operatic soundscapes and metal come together in a way that I find particularly appealing and they don't seem to compliment each other. Part of this could be the mix which seems to be dominated by vocals and operatics rather than metal guitar, but I cannot entirely fault that.
With this album it also becomes increasingly obvious to me that Thomas Vikstrom is not the right fit for this band. At times he pulls off a slightly operatic touch, but not with a lot of power in the delivery. When he comes through as a lead he just doesn't seem to have the sort of projection and dramatic feel that you'd think a singer for Therion would have or need. It's not that I don't like his singing, but it doesn't seem to work here and his voice never really soars above in the dramatic fashion I'd expect with this music. I can't help thinking he'd be best sticking with Dark Illusion (who are pretty great btw).
Basically, this album fails to grab me with metal hooks that keep me interested while expanding on that with operatic atmosphere. Instead I feel bogged down in songs meandering along most of the time. One notable exception is the title track which initially grabbed me and made me think I was in for a strong album. The song Sitra Atra is kind of what this album should have been with a good catchy metal roll, good lead vocal style (if not spectacular singing), and some nice choir use to back it up. This song is actually a winner and it's a shame the rest of the album fell flat after it. The only other bright spot is Din which succeeds in being a good straight forward ripper with some harsher vocals. Not exactly what I was looking for, but a good song is a good song.
In conclusion, the songs just don't seem to be here nor the sound coming together as a complete package. This is a miss coming off another somewhat poorly received album. I don't hate this album, but it does strike me as the definition of mediocre minus a couple bright spots. All in all, I'd call this one forgettable. Maybe bigger fans of Therion might find something more here, but I couldn't get into it much.
Highlights: Sitra Ahra, Din
Rating - 2.5/5
2. Kings Of Edom
3. Unguentum Sabbati
4. Land Of Canaan
5. Hellequin
6. 2012
7. Cú Chulainn
8. Kali Yuga, Pt. 3
9. The Shells Are Open
10. Din
11. After The Inquisition: Children Of The Stone
Therion are one of those bands among the heap who are pretty good, have their own sound, but have never quite amazed/impressed me. Their sound is decent and fairly ambitious with the band's larger than life operatics, but they've yet to do that one album for me... You know the one. The one that grabs you and never lets go. That being said I think they've put out some pretty decent music. The last one didn't do much for me, but you never know what a new album will bring.
On this one my complaint is almost the opposite of the last album. On Gothic Kabbalah I felt like Therion were going too traditional without rich soundscapes and letting the operatics flow. Strangely, on Sitra Ahra the opposite seems to be the case as the operatics are stepped up, but often in a meandering way that quite frankly bores me. The guitar never seems to drive these songs home and I find myself stuck in the middle of atmosphere that never really builds to anything. Rarely do both the operatic soundscapes and metal come together in a way that I find particularly appealing and they don't seem to compliment each other. Part of this could be the mix which seems to be dominated by vocals and operatics rather than metal guitar, but I cannot entirely fault that.
With this album it also becomes increasingly obvious to me that Thomas Vikstrom is not the right fit for this band. At times he pulls off a slightly operatic touch, but not with a lot of power in the delivery. When he comes through as a lead he just doesn't seem to have the sort of projection and dramatic feel that you'd think a singer for Therion would have or need. It's not that I don't like his singing, but it doesn't seem to work here and his voice never really soars above in the dramatic fashion I'd expect with this music. I can't help thinking he'd be best sticking with Dark Illusion (who are pretty great btw).
Basically, this album fails to grab me with metal hooks that keep me interested while expanding on that with operatic atmosphere. Instead I feel bogged down in songs meandering along most of the time. One notable exception is the title track which initially grabbed me and made me think I was in for a strong album. The song Sitra Atra is kind of what this album should have been with a good catchy metal roll, good lead vocal style (if not spectacular singing), and some nice choir use to back it up. This song is actually a winner and it's a shame the rest of the album fell flat after it. The only other bright spot is Din which succeeds in being a good straight forward ripper with some harsher vocals. Not exactly what I was looking for, but a good song is a good song.
In conclusion, the songs just don't seem to be here nor the sound coming together as a complete package. This is a miss coming off another somewhat poorly received album. I don't hate this album, but it does strike me as the definition of mediocre minus a couple bright spots. All in all, I'd call this one forgettable. Maybe bigger fans of Therion might find something more here, but I couldn't get into it much.
Highlights: Sitra Ahra, Din
Rating - 2.5/5
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