Edge Of Sanity
Crimson

THE REVIEW

Starting as one of the many death metal bands crowding Sweden in the early nineties, Edge Of Sanity have managed to evolve over time, incorporating into their sound gothic, hardcore, and progressive influences, while always remaining tied to the death genre.

In my opinion, their best example of this musical blend remains the album ''Crimson,'' released in 95. It is in fact a single track lasting about forty minutes, which incorporates riffs that nonchalantly transition from Entombed-style death/grind to delicate atmospheres reminiscent of the best Marrillon, black outbursts in full Nordic style, and acoustic arpeggios that have learned the lesson imparted by Opeth, slow-paced rhythms embodying the most suffocating doom, and sudden hardcore accelerations, all supported by a considerable technical-instrumental skill of the band (who on this occasion are helped by a respectable special guest, Mikael Akerfeldt, who delivers an outstanding vocal performance and a splendid contribution with the lead guitar).

Other great qualities of the album are primarily in Dan Swano's voice, which alternates between cavernous growls and enveloping cleanly sung verses with his unmistakable timbre, the quality of the production that highlights all the instruments (including the bass, yes), the repetition of some riffs that give the work that necessary continuity for such long episodes, and finally the particular fact that there are three guitars, two with the classic detuned death metal sound and one set on more melodic tones, fitting perfectly even in the album's hardest moments.

There is no discontinuity, no drops in tension: ''Crimson'' remains to this day an exception, a unique and courageous album that Edge Of Sanity (increasingly divided into two, with Swano on one side pushing for more melody and experimentation and the rest of the band eager to return to hard-hitting sounds) would not be able to replicate in their subsequent chapters.