TheRavenViewBlog: Amorphis

Regarded as Extreme Gothic Metal the british band Cradle Of Filth added from album to album dark gothic atmospheres to a general Black Metal skeleton leaving black metal legions in a hallucinating argue of what is or isn't real or true Black Metal.

Although, they cannot be ignored here, especially for the fact that they brought memorable releases in the nineties. Albums like "Dusk And Her Embrace - 1996" ; "Cruelty And The Beast - 1998" or the much praised and successful "Midian - 1999".

Those albums manage to seduce the listener into a bleak vampiric world with a thick atmosphere still accompanied by their original Black-Metal fury along with awesome, Byron inspired poetry at the lyrical section.

Much at the same musical area we can include the Greek band Rotting Christ, for their middle, late 90's, releases from their catalog, the Italian band Graveworm and the German band Agathodaimon.

On the other hand Sweden plays the third spot in order to sustain a hypothetical general plan of an imaginary Gothic Metal map.

Tiamat must be the first band to be known on this dark, cold northern web. If their first album "Sumerian Cry" was, for the most part anchored in the Death Metal style, their second effort entitled "The Astral Sleep - 1992 has already much to offer on the up-growing scene with their surprisingly melodic interludes added besides the general riffwork.

"Clouds - 1993" consolidates this style mixed with its gloomy-doomy approach, then on the superb "Wildhoney - 1994" confirmed they were a true force, even if the album has it's own Pink Floyd-ish touch, that created a heavy, yet truly atmospheric and powerful sonic display accompanied with an out-of this-world vocal delivery.

Starting with "A Deeper Kind Of Slumber - 1997" Tiamat's music moved more towards Gothic Rock leaving behind their dramatic atmosphere along with their Doom-Death Metal structured songs.

Therion is another big exponent of the Swedish Gothic Metal scene.

Their musical journey started as a Melodic Death Metal band with "...Of Darkness - 1991" and "Beyond Sanctorum - 1992" Gothic Death Metal on "Symphony Masses: Ho Drakon Ho Megas - 1993" and "Lepaca Kliffoth - 1995" reaching Symphonic / Operatic Metal from "Theli - 1996". The most important contribution for Gothic Metal was on "Lepaca Kliffoth - 1995" with all its arrangements and general style, seems like a Therion version of Celtic Frost's - "Into The Pandemonium".

Cemetary and Lake Of Tears continued somehow what Paradise Lost did on Shades Of God and Icon albums releasing memorable musical jams in the Swedish extreme metal like Cemetary: "Godless Beauty - 1993" ; "Black Vanity - 1994" ; "Sundown - 1996" or Lake Of Tears: "Greater Art - 1994" ; "Headstones - 1995" ; "A Crimson Cosmos - 1997".

Later on, Mathias Lodmalm, the vocalist, guitar player and main composer of Cemetary formed the band Sundown and placed, on the Gothic Metal table, an interesting album, named "Design 19" dated 1997 which is, somehow, a continuation of Cemetary.

The memorable song "Sinergy" being a great example in order to sustain that.

This collection of songs are filled with waves of Metal and Gothic-Rock, Depeche Mode-ish vibes and old school sonic traits placed here and there, on the overall work, making it a fresh and a very enjoyable record.

Their catalog, also includes albums like : Aluminium EP as of 1997 ; "Halo" - 1999 and "Glimmer" from the same year 1999.

Again, coming from the Swedish metal scene Beseech played an important role on the whole development of the Swedish Gothic Metal scene. Heavily influenced by Type O Negative there is no doubt regarding the evolution to an original and consistent musical discourse through "...from a Bleeding Heart -
1998' ; "Black Emotions - 2000" and "Souls Highway - 2002" outputs.

Paradise Lost GIF

Starting, like most of the bands, here, as a based Doom / Death Metal act, the Swedish band Katatonia delivered on their first EPs "Jhva Elohim Meth... the Revival - 1993" ; "For Funerals to Come... - 1995", but "moving" towards "Dance of December Souls - 1993"LP they reached Gothic Metal ground and international esteem, especially after releasing "Tonight's Decision - 1998".

An album which was highly appreciated and recommended even by Gregor Mackintosh of Paradise Lost.

Their musical journey continued and despite the fact that they are regarded as Depressive Rock, now, Katatonia remains an important piece in the whole Gothic Metal game.

There is no doubt that Draconian is one of the most representative band in that scene, not only in Sweden, but worldwide. They must be the archetypal crossover female voice / growl voice even it wasn't the first band to use it, but many think this is the perfect match by providing a perfect balance to sustain that.

From "Frozen Features - 2002"EP ; "Where Lovers Mourn - 2003" ; "Arcane Rain Fell - 2005" and "Turning Season Within - 2007" their reputation, respect and fan-base growth exponentially making Draconian a must listen in the general Gothic puzzle.

On the Finnish metal scene we remark the contribution of the band Amorphis starting, as usually as a typical Death Metal combo. Their music is not exactly gothic metal, but mostly Doom / Death Melodic Metal they had, also an impact at the right moment in the developing scene with their melodic approach on "The Karelian Isthmus - 1992" then on the "Tales From The Thousand Lakes - 1994" they manage to bring to attention an absolutely original combination of Death Metal, melodic gothic riffs folkish-inspired riff lines and divine keyboard work resulting an outstanding and totally memorable LP's throughout their entire discography, deeply drenched in the frozen northern atmosphere and a perfect soundtrack for the Karelian mythos.

A more gothic metal approach in their musical composition could be heard here and there, starting with the Tuonela album.

The next ones incorporates more melodic clean voices and folkish elements making Amorphis an important voice in general metal movement.
As Gothic Heavy Metal on the Finnish barricade can be enumerate Sentenced , The Black League, Charon or Poisonblack.

The most fulminant band of this triade must be Sentenced, who released two Death Metal historical albums on the vein of Death (band) versus European Death Metal influenced style as "Shadows of Past - 1991" and "North from Here - 1993" went to Melodic Death Metal and on "Down - 1996" totally jumped onto the Gothic Metal wagon, creating a very personal sound and releasing definitive Gothic tunes to be remembered by fans from here to eternity. The crue disbanded in 2006 and frontman Ville Laihiala continues with Poisonblack, up to this day, placed kind on the same musical coordinates.

Charon must be the third band in that vein, with albums like "Sorrowburn - 1998" ; "Tearstained - 2000" ; "Downhearted - 2002" containing the sound and style paved by fellow's Sentenced years before, but definitely a standout on terms of music quality.

It is not deniable the role of female-fronted vocalist bands in the whole general development of Gothic Metal.

Bands like the above mentioned veterans The Gathering, Evanescence , Nightwish , Lacuna Coil or Within Temptation, as mentioned before that goes mostly for their first releases.

Their follow-up albums diversified the musical and sonic take, changing through atmospheric, or symphonic metal, progressive rock or even pop-rock and they have some kind of an ambiguous position in a history of Gothic Metal, per say, as their song structure totally lack the needed ingredients in order to strictly place those bands in the Gothic-Rock/Metal style.

Evanescence, par example is just a Nu-Metal band, nothing more, nothing less.

As on "the looks" side, we cannot say how to spot an authentic gothic metal fan down the street, because they look just like a typical, normal metalhead (if they're not wearing a t-shirt to point it out, of course!).

However, some of them used to dress just like Paradise Lost or My Dying Bride were dressed in their promo photos published in the media at the beginning of the '90's with black leather boots, black jeans or black leather pants and occasionally black long (leather) coats.

As for the girls, many of them adopted the "standard" so to speak, Gothic-Rock look or they just look normal.

VIDEO OVERVIEW:

Paradise Lost - As I Die
               - Pity The Sadness
             - Embers Fire
             - True Belief
             - The Last Time

Anathema - Sweet Tears
                 - Mine Is Yours To Drown In
                 - The Silent Enigma

My Dying Bride - Symphonaire Infernus Et Spera Empyrium
                 - The Thrash Of The Nacked Limbs
                 - The Songless Bird
                 - The Cry Of Mankind