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Rating: Have you ever heard of Artrosis? I hope you have, but I have a feeling that for many, this will be the first time their name is mentioned. On the internet, (on Google, for example) you can't even find a review about them; they seem to not exist, yet in Poland, they are considered the best Gothic Metal band. This issue has to do with record labels; sometimes contracts are signed with labels that don't distribute albums in certain parts of the world, thus not guaranteeing success for the bands. A real pity, because in my opinion, Artrosis deserves to be known.
I bought the CD used just out of curiosity and without knowing who they even are. Honestly, at the first superficial listen, I was a bit disappointed because their style seemed vague and poorly defined, but then after listening to it many more times over time, much more attentively, at the moment I realized that I was singing the songs myself, I analyzed it well. Now I judge it as an original album, far from any type of gothic metal heard so far. The singer is a woman, and like the voice of Nightwish, she tends to "sing lyrically" but in a context totally devoid of epicness and instrumental extremism, rather in a delicate, vitreous, and sweet melody. The power is minimally hinted at and there is no character of "Melodic Speed", in return it's a modest and simple gothic style, with many mystical atmospheres. It is calm, nocturnal, atmospheric, and poetic, but not too similar to Lacrimosa due to a fair amount of cold and slightly raw sounds.
The songs are a bit heavier, much like those of old gothic bands, with many sounds that recall cathedrals, and the female voice strongly evokes the idea of lament, frustration, and crying. In short, it seems like gothic at the origin, before the genre was influenced by all the other different metal categories. In terms of melody, it will never reach the levels of "October Rust" by Type O Negative nor Within Temptation for technique, in fact, the band's compositional system has a hint of humility, but the true essence of metal (at a classical level) is always felt, both in the drums and the guitar, and the melodic vein is given both by the soaring of this semi-lyrical voice and by the fluid and particular (almost ancient) sound of the keyboards.
At times, they seem to have slightly Asian tendencies due to the frequent rhythm of "Arab" or "Egyptian" influence. I particularly recommend the last song: "Emerald Night"
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
03 Taniec (03:52)
Balet naszych serc wciaz kreci sie
W morderczym tancu
Lecz tylko to ma sens
Gdy mi ciebie brak umieram zn�w
Gdy wracasz budze sie
Bo tylko to ma sens
W lustrze moich pragnien widze cie
Odbija twoja twarz
Odkrywa strzepy marzen
Rzezbiac we mnie dusze
Wciaz czulym usciskiem dloni
Zasadzasz we mnie zlo
Tylko zlo...
Zasypiam cichutko w twoich ramionach
Tulisz mnie w rytmie walca
I tanczymy
Taniec ten jest odkupieniem zla
Kt�rego zadasz
Wypelniajac droge swego przeslania
W morderczym tancu...
04 Nazgul (04:43)
Zrodzeni z bolu i nienawisci
Stworzeni przez ogien i strach
Dziewieciu jezdzcow ciemnosci
Zakletych slug pierscienia
Bezksztaltne ciala
Skryte w twierdzy gdzies na skraju mroku
Uwiezione dusze wojownikow
Witaj w Minas Morgul.
08 Epitafium (06:09)
Patrzac w lustro smutku
Widzac swoje martwe oczy
Skryte przed swiatlem
Posrod posagow bostw zapomnianych
Tanczac posrod cieni
Minionych lat wspomnien
Tysiac barw szarosci
Utraconych kolorow blask
Przejdz na druga strone
Tam odnajdziesz swoja smierc
Ukojenia pokuse tak dawno wymarzona.
10 Szmaragdowa noc (05:55)
[2x]
W szmaragdową noc
W kryształowym zamku
Wciąż budzimy się i zasypiamy
Wciąż w ramionach swych
Puste oczy pełne kłamstw
Lecz wciąż kocham Cię tysiącem słońc
I tysiąc róż rozkwita nowym snem
I tysiąc złotych róż rozwija swe marzenia
W szmaragdową noc
W kryształowym zamku
[2x]
Gdzie tysiąc złotych róż rozkwita nowym snem
I tysiąc złotych róż rozwija swe marzenia
W szmaragdową noc
W kryształowym zamku
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