Katatonia
Last Fair Deal Gone Down

THE REVIEW

Gray, sick, gloomy, desperate, violent, tall, too tall... that is Last Fair Deal Gone Down. I notice that Jonas Renkse matured, and not just a little in the singing. Obviously, Katatonia won't go unnoticed with this album, very rich in notes, filtered voices, always surprising melodies, guitars alternating between absolute clarity and the deepest gloom, just like the voice, sometimes calm, sometimes tormented and pleading. This album has all the credentials to become a future masterpiece. Absolutely yes! Katatonia with this album have left behind important works like "Discouraged Ones" and "Tonight's Decision," both albums of extraordinary beauty, with a much gloomier sound compared to LFDGD which shifts towards a more post sound but without betraying the Katatonia brand. In a few words this album is airier, richer in notes, as I've already said, but not for this less gloomy... on the contrary!

Now I'll try to describe with words the notes enclosed within this fabulous digipack. "Dispossession" opens the record. You can notice a rising guitar, a dark, suffocating beginning, extraordinarily very beautiful indeed, then comes the entry of the heavy drum as usual, and the piece begins, the guitar traces a solo, alternated with another distorted guitar enriching the sounds making them strong, hard, and quite gloomy. Then begins the splendid singing, gentle, sweet, melancholic, the voice is very clean and fragile. Let's move to "Chrome," a bass and two guitars: one rhythmic, the other solo. Filtered, faded effects, loaded with adrenaline, and the usual soft singing, gradually the piece finds itself on high thanks to a formidable solo, a giant solo that elevates the piece, which then restarts from the beginning, and fades away. "We Must Bury You": grabs you and doesn't let go, a song about two and a half minutes long, obsessive, invoking, dragging, with a two-voice chorus. In this piece, the guitar rhythm shines the most, present in almost the whole song, with hypnotic percussion, the guitars turn on and off suddenly, letting you fall into a swirling finale. "Tear Gas," also liked by those who don’t listen to this genre of music, I know because I've had proof. "I Transpire" leaves no room to breathe, it takes all the breath on its own, if you are claustrophobic, be careful. Notes increasingly dark, voices increasingly filtered, arpeggios, a sickly, very thin, velvety bass, the guitars run wild with ups and downs, technically absolutely elaborate arpeggios, a jewel of a song. But finally, you can breathe with "Tonight's Music." A piece tending toward the romantic, the initial arpeggio says a lot, over elegant and stylish singing. The piece flows and passes as smooth as oil.

"Clean Today": this time it's the cymbals that open the piece. Here the voice begins to warm up, it's wider, open, the guitar bursts with aggressive riffs, the drum is hammering, obsessive, petrified, all this to then fill the soul with the initial "Passing Bird," impossible to remain indifferent in front of this masterpiece of a song. Here the violins take their place, tenderly softened, like little birds in spring, along with a clean guitar... and the orgasm begins. As the piece progresses you will realize how the voice can change from cheerfulness to sickness. A break interrupts the piece and gives way to a gray, gloomy, and violent guitar, a double-edged blade. But we are at the tail end of this masterpiece, and it's time to move on to "The Future Of Speech," also engaging and passionate, the drum is calm, the guitar limits itself to some arpeggios, but after two minutes a hint of guitar seems to have gotten agitated, then falls into nothingness with a hiccuping drum. "Sweet Nurse" welcomes us with a melodic guitar effect, here the voice becomes sad, the drum slippery but always impassive, hard, cynical. This piece flows great, up to a final solo similar to the initial one, flowing like a waterfall that fills us with notes and shivers. And we've reached the end, now it's "Don't Tell A Soul," first of all, the drum replaces sticks with brushes (this only at the beginning), the melody is graceful, inviting, with a keyboard that seems to imitate some wind instrument, a small orchestra... and then the guitar wipes everything out with riffs that cut the throat, for a surprising finale, that afterward you’d be tempted to press another time the button (Play) because it will leave you with a strange sensation, that you wouldn’t want to leave anymore.

Great credit goes to the artwork of maestro Travis Smith, who once again has hit the mark... too bad I can't enter inside it... but if I open my ears well maybe...