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Rating:
This album is not a masterpiece... it is THE masterpiece.
Finally, Alexi Lahio manages to mix all the components that have made the Finnish combo among the most famous and eclectic in the world, pulling out of the hat a perfectly assembled creature, where the metallic parts are polished to a shine and the subtle, almost imperceptible black veins, reminiscent of a now very distant past, peek out here and there, between a sweep and a riff with clear neoclassical inspiration.
The prodigious creature grows with each listen, moving from the primal rage and fury of Warheart to the full realization of its technical abilities in Silent Night Bodom Night, where a mid-tempo with a double pedal in grinder style will provide you with some decent material for your home headbanging.
We even allow the young and inexperienced creature a small detour into the cheeky and raw territories of Hatebreeder's "punk" only to be rewarded by the hypnotic Bed of Razors, which in its chorus ventures into calmer, more relaxed territories, a moment of reprieve to rest our ears, fascinated as well as astonished, before continuing to be pleasantly tortured by the assaulting power metal of Towards Dead End where Alexi Lahio rules with a 360° sweeping and humiliates anyone who thought they could become a decent guitarist.
The sweetness of the Black Widow intro deceives us about the true nature of this song, which in my opinion is one of the best realized, thanks also to the excellent songwriting work of Janne Warmann, who between "orchestra hit" strings and winds, envelops us in a refined neoclassical atmosphere.
However, it's not yet time to congratulate those who created all this; if anyone still had any doubts about the greatness of this masterpiece, the duo Wrath Within and Children Of Bodom will convince us that we spent our €18 very well. I don't think there's anything to say about Downfall, except that we should remember this song... because it will be the last one we can hear from the real Children Of Bodom, a creature that Alexi Lahio, from Follow The Reaper onwards, is leading by the hand towards an ever more dangerous stylistic evolution with an uncertain outcome.
There's just one thing left to define for this masterpiece... I'd say a nice "power extreme metal," a big melting pot where the most varied influences come together for a single purpose: to satisfy those who daily battle against knots, clogged sinks, and various shampoos to have enough material to devote to a prolific headbanging.
Tracklist Lyrics Samples and Videos
01 Warheart (04:07)
"From Now On We Are Enemies.... You and I!"
I'm an outcast on the path of rebound
Everything is frail, I desolate, crush and burn
I have chosen darkness to be my guide
War is in my heart, death is by my side
-Chorus-
Warheart! No remains from compassion or love
Warheart! Hate your fellow as yourself
I have chosen night to be my guide
When the daylight strikes I hide in my trench and die
I'm the coldblooded killer, who'll fuck you up
Today I'm the warheart I'm dying to win the battle I live everyday
One for all, all for me, I'm an animal, better set me free
I'm an outcast on the path of rebound
Everything is frail, I desolate, crush and burn
I have chosen darkness to be my guide
War is in my heart, death is by my side
-Chorus-
Warheart! No remains from compassion or love
Warheart! Hate your fellow as yourself
03 Hatebreeder (04:20)
I found session, betrayed now, it's all now
I saw, human, I see so
Well I am certain of, I don't know how
Other souls beyond this smile
I hate you from the bottom of my heart
I have no fucking right now, I say so
Beside you, I saw, your ignition
Other souls beyond this smile
Well I thought now I said I saw some ignition
I saw it, your vanity, your mentality for sure!..
...Never seen the fooled, beast inside of me
Well I'm an asshole, and really will always be
So why now, let it be
Is that so fucking hard, be dead, I'm free
Burn it hard, make a void that sucks to the suction drive
We need the open thing with my special little part of life
I'm accessing in the northern light
You know I got no fucking other souls guilty now
I've got no fine, no fucking thoughts, so
A combination, now you're fucking dead
Never seen the fooled beast inside of me
Well I'm an asshole, and really will always be
So why now, let it be
Is that so fucking hard, be dead, I'm free
04 Bed of Razors (03:56)
I see the candle light burning in your eyes
Flaering up my eyes in flames
On this pitch-black summer night
Of passion and pain
The razor carressed my flesh and my arms turned red,
I feel a vast desire
Years of pain are flowing down my arms, sweet, red, warm
stream you drink
Make me released
Give me your hand let me make you feel the ease
In the bed of razors we bleed together
I feel the fire burning in my eyes
I see it sparkling in your eyes
The blaze you're feeding more and more
The razor carressed your flesh and your arms turned red
I feel your vast desire
Tearing pain is flowing down your arms, sweet, red, warm,
stream I drink to make you realeased
Holding your arms cherish this composure
In the bed of razors we sleep together, forever
06 Black Widow (03:58)
(Fuck!)
(Right!)
(Fire!) the fire is more right than my eyes
Don't remain, go misplay, you're so, so wild
(Traitor!) your vengeance night, yes, always for me
Always now, once you know, widow
(Right!)
(Murder!) your fire murders all my problems
Ah (oh yeah!)
[Chorus:]
Fire: here I see the fire in my heart
Traitor: hate your face, obey or you're gonna die
Murder: murderer in you call me to die
Oh yeah: I'll come back to you when I'm dead
Your voice is getting closer (today: fuck every day!)
Sleep up in the night - the Lord doesn't matter in my fight
Widow, tell me the reason
[Chorus:]
Fire: fire is into turning in my heart
Traitor: hate your face, obey or you're gonna die
Murder: praying on my knee, I saw her near, come here
Fire: I'll come back to you when I'm dead
I'm dead: this is all, widow
07 Wrath Within (03:53)
Once I desire, eternity has come
Pull back, the tale is black, all we have to die
You say so, I am invading vision, satisfy
Once I look back, so miracle
On a crib with the night
Sensation, call me to die
Look down, we have to sow
And all waits to say go
Once I desire, be back to hear this cry : let me out
And I am the first one, any want to die !?
With my salvation within your pain
You gotta develop pain into your desires
What it always about : you raise your pain
Why you can't desire your cold regained ?
Come on, get down
I touch your legs, so cold, make me cold in the light
And I burn now, no pain
Your pain seems so far away
So everything that's cold in light may die down
You raise your pain
And I kill your strain
Anyway, I get into your desires my way
I crave your pain
I can't swallow your pain : why you returned ?
09 Downfall (04:33)
The night of timeless fire is drawing near
I flee...
Throughout the years of throe
Watching through a mirror, as I fall apart
I see a wreck, I'm burning
I see angels burning, falling down in ruins
Looking down I see me, I'm my own enemy
Watching myself decaying, (decaying)
falling from high spirits
I flee...
Throughout the ruins of me
Longing for finding my way out
Leaving myself, there's nothing left for me
The ruins are about to crumble down.
The flame is dying by shivery winds of jet black skies
It reflects hatred in my eyes
I see angels burning, falling down in ruins
Looking down I see my ashes scattered around my grave
Angels whispering fire, no longer I'm alive
Settled down I'm done with the trip to my kingdom come
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Other reviews
By alexi89
The genius of singer/guitarist Alexi Laiho is manifested in all its splendor.
‘Downfall’ is the masterpiece within the masterpiece, just under five minutes of pure ecstasy.
By Extreme_90
The songs are true gems: fantastic guitar solos, riffs that manage to create an amazing melody, engaging keyboard parts.
This is a beautiful album from one of the best metal bands around.
