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THE REVIEW
No, we are not there! Really: enough! Do we want to recover the magical sound of Dead Can Dance? Fine! But, for heaven's sake, let's do it without the usual clichés and without putting in that seriousness derived from certain funeral and ceremonial metal.
It's true: I knew about the semi-metal past of Elend! However, I would have noticed it even without listening to their debut!
The guys take themselves too seriously and, besides copying CERTAIN things from the already mentioned Dead Can Dance, they compose long, verbose, and soporific pieces.
Gothic rock, in all its forms, has significantly deteriorated since the end of the golden '80s. With the exception of some neofolk formations and some "eclectic" artists (The 3rd And The Mortal and Raison D'ètre above all), we have witnessed a nerve-wracking repetition of all the stylistic features of black-clad or melancholic bands!
Not that this "Winds Devouring Men" should be discarded without a second thought. The production is valid, the formation's melancholic and intimate vein is felt; but this is not enough! No gentlemen!
Experiment, merge styles, accompany new instruments (or samples of various natures), think of other formations (Cocteau Twins for example) and shake off that "day of the dead" face.
After the various, and yet diverse, Sopor Aeternus and Lacrimosa ...a question arises spontaneously: has sonic melancholy now become ordinary business?
Failed! Not because I'm crying over the twenty euros spent (I've spent much more and on things of very little relevance!), not because I hate the dark or what's left of this disjointed movement! No! The point is that the proliferation of sad figures, both in goth and metal or other genres, is becoming intolerable.
If with Dead Can Dance we have, mentally, traveled to every spiritual corner of the world and if with The 3rd And Mortal we have witnessed the aurora borealis, with Elend we fall asleep bored and exhausted.
Hit me if you must! Even changing ears, I would not know how to write and express anything else.
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Summary by Bot
The review criticizes Elend's album 'Winds Devouring Men' for its excessive seriousness and clichéd approach echoing Dead Can Dance and funeral metal. While acknowledging decent production and melancholic atmosphere, it finds the music verbose, boring, and lacking originality. The reviewer laments the stagnation in gothic and metal genres dominated by repetitive melancholic themes. Overall, the album fails to offer fresh or engaging sounds, leaving the listener exhausted rather than inspired.Tracklist Videos
Elend
Elend are a French–Austrian ensemble led by composers/multi‑instrumentalists Iskandar Hasnawi and Renaud Tschirner. Debuting with Leçons de Ténèbres (1994), they pursued the Officium Tenebrarum trilogy before evolving into the Wind Cycle (2003–2007), fusing neoclassical, dark ambient and industrial elements with choral/orchestral writing. A World in Their Screams features narration in French and an opening soprano passage in ancient Greek.07 Reviews
Other reviews
By StefanoHab
"This is because 'Winds Devouring Men' is not music. It is a concept. It is desolation, it is solitude, it is an ultra-dimensional journey."
"Winds Devouring Men is a record that frightens, that eliminates all superficiality, that requires a 'face to face.' Courage is needed to face it."
