- Country: Hungary
- Genre: Progressive Metal / Symphonic Metal / Melodic Death Metal
- For fans of: Septicflesh, Rotting Christ, Cradle of Filth
DARKWAVE – Evanescent Horizons
Zsolt Némethy is the mind behind Darkwave and on “Evanescent Horizons” he presents an album that draws on quite different corners of Metal. Its core idea revolves around the end of a long relationship and one person’s attempt to deal with what is left behind.
The story may speak of love, loss and loneliness, but the music is not calm at all. Here we have Melodic Death Metal guitars and drums, Symphonic elements, neoclassical leads and Progressive passages that appear when they should.
Melody, darkness and plenty of changes
What stands out early is the way Némethy blends the different influences.
The guitars hold the Death Metal part of the sound, with plenty of riffs and fast passages, while classical instruments, mainly church organ, come on top. The keys give a darker and more Gothic feel, without turning the whole record into pure Symphonic Metal.
In “Blood-Sealed Solitude” there is even a Progressive disposition, with tempo changes that reach 7/8. It is not something done just to show the band can play difficult things. It ties in quite well with the song.
“Transitio Mundi” is perhaps the record’s most cinematic moment. It starts slower, with vocals full of effects and prominent strings, before the guitars come in with arpeggios and the track takes a much stranger turn.
It is one of those moments when the record becomes truly interesting.
The guitars are the strong point
Even though “Evanescent Horizons” is a solo project, Némethy has managed to fill the sound quite well.
The guitars are the strongest part of the compositions. The leads have melody, there are plenty of neoclassical passages and at points such as “The Good Friday Exsultet” it is clear that this is where most of the work lies.
By contrast, the other instruments mostly serve the songs rather than trying to steal the show.
This shows most in the vocals. The growls are fairly flat and repetitive, so they do not always convey all the emotion the album’s story wants to get across.
They are not bad, it is just that in a record so heavily based on atmosphere I would have expected a little more intensity and variety.
When the ideas start to repeat
“Evanescent Horizons” is an interesting listen, but not all the songs are equally strong.
There are plenty of classic Melodic Death Metal points we have heard many times before, while some of the symphonic passages are fairly simple.
This becomes more noticeable in the second half of the record. Some tracks work better on their own than when heard continuously as part of the concept.
“The Parchment Night” even moves into more of a cabaret territory. It is one of those moments that can easily divide listeners. Fortunately, here Némethy’s approach does not become excessive and the song stays within the record’s overall mood.
The production also follows the familiar “wall of sound” logic, with everything sounding full and loud. I would have liked a bit more space between the instruments, though. The melodies have plenty of work behind them and would benefit if they could breathe more.
Tracklist
- Gaslight Elegy – 05:50
- Blood-Sealed Solitude – 04:49
- The Parchment Night – 05:26
- Transitio Mundi – 06:11
- The Godhook Silence – 05:32
- TrES-2b – 01:49
- Farewell to the Angel of Sardis – 07:19
- The Good Friday Exsultet – 05:46
- On the Turning of the Years – 05:53
- The Last Dance of the Unchosen – 06:09
- Compline Over the World – 03:10
