En Declin
Trama

In the Italian metal scene, it seems right to carve out a place of great respect for the Romans En Declin. Romans like Novembre, Klimt 1918, and Room With A View, in some ways similar to at least the last two mentioned, but endowed with their own particular style that makes them stand out from the crowd. Their first real album of 2005 "Trama" (previously just a demo) is extraordinary. I say this because it is rare to find a band capable of crafting a debut of such a high-quality level. The production, the crystalline class of these musicians, immediately make us jump as soon as we start the CD and embark on this walk in an autumn forest, which is none other than our soul, explored in its most melancholic and sweetly sad emotions. They owe a lot not only to the Italian groups already mentioned but also and especially to the Opeth of "Damnation" and the more intimate and acoustic Anathema, with a keen eye on certain psychedelia. It's all channeled into the broad stream of gothic rock, but this is limiting, also drawing from progressive for certain instrumental openings that give chills.

The first real blow to the heart comes with "Until Bleeding", with its pressing rhythm backed by the vocal performance of Maurizio Tavani, who delivers a splendid performance, as well as the band's remarkable bassist, capable of weaving a harmonious and balanced structure that supports this track (and the subsequent ones) throughout their entire duration. The entire album feels very autumnal, with leaves falling under the last warm lights of the sun, it has the nostalgic flavor of a swing left alone to sway because whoever was on it had to go back inside to do homework. The entire work is infused with a mad spleen: just listen to "1647", with its stretched and atmospheric guitars, which also know how to tear when the moment is right.

When there is anger (the duo "My Anger" and "Still Anger") it is measured, controlled, and reduced to acoustic arrangements that perhaps strike more than a thousand punches, because these songs are about unspoken words and regrets that hurt more than insults. And when anger is released, it is more a suffering that brings tears to the eyes, more a desperate cry than an invective.

The album nonetheless features more animated and purely metal parts: the chorus of "When Edge..." is an example of this and demonstrates how the Romans know how to navigate on multiple fronts.

The atmospheric "A Passage..." then closes the album, confirming the excellent work done by the band from Rome. But there is still one more song that I must mention, deliberately left by me at the end because it deserves all your attention.

The amazing "Isquosadmove", opened by a verse in Italian inspired by a poem by Quasimodo, is an intense ballad that gradually becomes warmer and more enveloping, mixing the metal harshness of the guitar riffs with the clear and poetic voice of the singer, who perhaps reaches his peak here. This song can be taken as a manifesto of En Declin's music, a music for beautiful souls who know suffering, sadness, and melancholy, and who can also see the light in them and know how to warm themselves with the pale warmth that these emotions can offer.

Unmissable not only for those who love metal (Italian and otherwise), but also for those who feel the need, from time to time, to be lulled by an autumn with warm and comforting hues.