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PHOENIX MOURNING When Excuses Become Antiques
Metal Blade (2006)
Some bands like Phoenix Mourning really have
all the luck in the
world! What else can you say about this young
quintet, when you realise
that two years after their conception
they have managed, not only to sign a contract with
the all mighty Metal Blade, but also record their debut album in the
legendary Morissound Studios, under the personal
supervision of Mr.Tom Morris (Sepultura, Obituary, Iced Earth)?
Thinking of all the well-known Thrash & Death Metal outfits that have
paid their visit to Tampa/Florida for recording purposes, one will
justifiably assume that Phoenix Mourning would be part of that genre,
but this is not really the case. You can find varied influences on this
band's sound, from such diverse acts as Tool and Dark Tranquillity, yet
the foundations of this band's music are built with Emo/Metalcore music
formulas in mind.
Seeing as I am not the biggest fan of this type of music, I knew that
Phoenix Mourning would have to present me with something quite
different from the average metalcore hybrid that dominates the music
scene nowadays, in order to attract my attention. Have they succeeded?
Well, I have to admit that I have not yet managed to establish to what
extent I really like this band - yet, there are a few moments in this
thirteen track release which portray Phoenix Mourning as a band with a
lot of potential.
The mixture of Death Metal screams with clean vocals, and the idea of
short cut edge riffs being accompanied by some really catchy melodies
create a very nice musical contrast, evidence of which can be found in
the Dark Tranquillity sounding "One January Morning". On the other
hand, the bands persistence of creating songs based on that exact
formula, made me soon loose interest in the remaining compositions of
the album - well, that was until I was introduced to the very first
notes of "The Ornament". I am really not sure whether it was the music
of Tool that this quintet had in mind when recording this three and a
half-minute composition, but the parade of many different riffs in
strict military formation creates that exact feeling.
The real surprise, though, came almost near the very end, when the
slightly futuristic keyboard intro and a beautiful break half way
through the song filled with beautiful violin melodies, left me
completely speechless! Why on earth did they choose not to invest in
more such compositions in this album? I really don't know - what I do
know is that I really hope that they will do this in their future
releases!
I do not regret for a moment having spent my precious time listening to
this release. It is true that "When Excuses Become Antiques" did not
manage to shake my world, and that it will probably take a while before
I put it again on my CD player, yet I am sure that people with a
slightly different musical background will probably appreciate this
band more than I did. Well, why don't you check them out and see what
it is that you think?
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Review
by John Stefanis
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