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Underoath - News
Underoath: Lost in the Sound of Separation
| 05-09-2008 08:21 | 0 reaction(s) | add reaction | add news |
 If there's one lesson which we should all heed when it comes to pre-release promotion, it is that we should never lend our ears to the artist's own description of their work. Just as every filmic sequel tags itself the 'Empire Strikes Back' of their genre only to turn out to be the “Spider-man 3” of their genre, so too do the artists laying down terms such as 'heavier', 'grander', 'forward thinking', 'with greater intensity' and 'more epic in scope'.
Every idea holds greater potential when allowed to swirl in the imagination, so it's almost inevitable that expectations will not be met. With that in mind, we'll get this right off our collective chest. This album is not as heavy as you've been led to believe, neither is it one giant leap for music-kind.
What "Lost in the Sound of Separation" is, is a bizarre hybrid of all of their earlier incarnations. For those unfamiliar with the band's back catalogue think Isis meets Fear Before the March of Flames. Forever gone are the catchy pop-hooks of "They're Only Chasing Safety" which drew in the crowds, but at the expense of some serious scene points. What is left is a more ambient beast, wherein songs often venture into extensive chill-out breakdowns courtesy of keyboardist Christopher Dudley.
When the mood isn't being set, it's all frantic hardcore-bordering-on-metal. With his third album as front-man for the band Spencer Chamberlain has gradually improved the depth and range of his anguished screams whilst still retaining a measure of decipherability to his words, meaning it won't be immediately necessary to sample the album whilst simultaneously typing 'Underoath lyrics' into your friendly neighbourhood search-engine.
The album kicks off with a Team America-style false start, which begs the consideration that maybe they have hired the worst producer in the world to turn their knobs. Happily, they haven't been giving Bernard Butler extra work, and the full sonic impact smashes down soon after the album's initiation.
Actual producer Adam Dutkiewicz (of Killswitch Engage) has captured the rawness and live-esque intensity of the band well. Several subtle touches litter the album, such as the mix retaining guitar static when they lie dormant, background shouts of count-ins and numerous other things, all designed to keep the album from sounding too 'clean'.
If there are to be charges levied at the album, it would be the band's inability to carry a mood and/or atmosphere throughout an entire song. All too often songs end up a thousand miles away from where they started with no real musical need for the change. Whilst this point would be a large check in the 'pro' column for most bands, Underoath seem to always pick the same changes. Your average track will start off with some heavy hitting and kinetic screams; continue for a while interrupted by a few by-and-large generic metalcore breakdowns before dropping the pace and degenerating into somewhat stifled ambience before the screams are reintroduced.
Largely eschewing this mould are the two closing tracks. "Too Bright to See, Too Loud to Hear" does it completely the wrong way whereas finale "Desolate Earth :: The End is Here" does everything completely to perfection.
Depending on your predisposition to bad news or good news first, you can either read the next paragraph first or the following one to start.
Bad news: "Too Bright to See, Too Loud to Hear" is to all intents and purposes "Some Will Seek Forgiveness, Others Escape" part two. This time though, the cheesy ballad switches the lyric "Jesus, I'm ready to come home" for "Good God, can you still get us home", even going so far as to again kick the song up on a sustained 'home'. Will the next album feature "Dear Buddha, I'm prepared to return home"? Only time will tell.
Good news: Album finale "Desolate Earth :: The End is Here" may well be the finest song the band have ever composed. Switching for minimalistic tone, conveyed through scattered and digitised drums, yearning violin bows, touching guitar tremolos and the centrepiece of piano chords and Chamberlain's subdued and resonating screams the closer truly shows what the band's potential is when they choose to follow a theme through to its natural conclusion.
As it is, the rest of "Lost in the Sound of Separation" is on the cusp of proving the album title a self-fulfilling prophecy. Enjoyable, but eminently forgettable metal stylings in a hardcore box |
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