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Versione 1
Rating:
Now, I could tell you about the entire discography of the Finnish band, leveraging their courage to change their music at some point in contrast to their beginnings, the fact that their frontman is a melancholic giant named Ville, and the subtle irony that pervades their pessimism.
Instead, you simply need to know that the album in question is a great record. Starting from the opener (instrumental intro) that, in a few seconds, throws us into the melancholic Finnish landscape, we are immediately seduced by the dark sweetness of Tenkula's arpeggios (I know, I know...) and associates, which often blossoms into pleasant melodies that, with our neighbors' good consent, we find ourselves singing while we shower, mow the lawn, and walk the dog.
If we really want to talk about genres, okay, we find ourselves within a gothic metal (especially in the atmosphere and lyrics) that winks at a certain dark hard rock, which has its guardians like The Cult and The Sisters of Mercy. Then again, in Finland, they know how to do this genre well, personalizing it with a groove of mysterious, alcoholic, fancy-pants depressives.
Back to us, the songs flow by with pleasure. From "Cross my heart" to "Neverlasting," passing through the more melodic "Brief is the light," Lahiala and friends lead us into a scenario that's melancholic, but never too heavy, also thanks to a very enjoyable rhythm and fitting melodies. A successful and convincing mix of romance and power, the common thread of the entire album, but also of the Sentenced attitude in recent years.
A special mention is deserved for the introspective "Everything is nothing," a delicate and icy gem. And how can we not spend a few words on the *funny* and badass "Excuse me while I kill myself" (also note the Maiden-like riff) and "The luxury of a grave," where they ironically play on gothic clichés, but maybe I'm the only one noticing, showcasing excellent sound and vocal interpretation. Yes, there's also "You're the one," a typical Finnish sappy ballad that will also appeal to those who listen to fellow countrymen Him, but personally I find it the only uninspired track on the album, but that's subjective.
But, dear friends, if I wrote all this, it's also to highlight the icy beauty of "No one there." A true peak, emotionally and compositionally, of the album, a poem dedicated to the native land that, through an excellent melody and intensity, offers a magical, nostalgic, moving conclusion to the journey that they take us on from the very first notes of the album, and it immediately makes you want to relive it to appreciate nuances that might be missed during an inattentive first listen.
A journey into the "Cold White Light" is highly recommended, truly a great soundtrack during a winter day with some worries drifting away and some too many memories advancing menacingly...
Thank you Sentenced, the cold months without your music would be less charming. A blanket made of notes.
Tracklist Lyrics Samples and Videos
04 Neverlasting (03:35)
Carpe diem...
Seize the day before your life fades away.
Reach for the skies - for the distant sun
and keep on hiding from the gun.
No! You need to sell your soul
for it's great to lose control.
Can't you feel that growing desire
to go down with the blazing fire?
You need to burn and reach to the point of no return.
- Waste no time dreaming in vain!
You and I aren't built to last
- Go astray - the only way!
You and I will make it fast
- Burn the candle at both ends!
Let's take a ride before we fall
- Leave no room for happy endings!
and make it right for once and for all.
Something's twisted in your head
for you live as you were dead.
Therefore you must play with the gun
and be sure to have your fun.
Take my hand and I'll lead you astray
for it's the only way.
Let's give in to the growing desire
and go down with the blazing fire.
We need to burn and reach the point of no return.
- Waste no time dreaming in vain!
You and I aren't built to last.
- Go astray - the only way!
You and I will make it fast
- Burn the candle at both ends!
Let's take a ride before we fall.
- Leave no room for happy endings!
And make it right for once and for all.
05 Aika multaa muistot (Everything Is Nothing) (04:33)
Everything is nothing to me, I couldn't care less
A stern cold man is what I am, hard, relentless
And thought I might have strayed the path I wouldn't change a thing
I've hated life to the fullest yet with longing deep within
For my name is sorrow and I'm a friend of misery
I deprived myself of love for eternal agony
And I don't even dare to try - I know I can only lose
Between this life I live and nothing I have to choose
Take me home...
...to the one I belong
Heyyy!!
I'll see you all go down and witness your demise
I'll be the last to close, the last to close my eyes
And forgive me nothing for I truly meant it all
- what I've said, what I've done
06 Excuse Me While I Kill Myself (03:48)
"How do you do? Have yourselves a pleasant afternoon!"
Well, fuck you, too!
"Good night" is the one I choose for you!
- I'll kill myself:
I'll blow my brains onto the wall!
- See you in Hell,
I will not take this anymore!
Now, this is where it ends,
this is where I will draw the line
So, 'scuse me while I end my life.
I will pull this through
Not having a reason is no excuse
What the Hell do you suppose I have left to lose?
- I'll kill myself:
I'll blow my brains onto the wall!
- See you in Hell,
I will not take this anymore!
Now, this is where it ends,
this is where I will draw the line
So, 'scuse me while I end my life.
[instrumental]
- I'll kill myself:
I'll blow my brains onto the wall!
- See you in Hell,
I will not take this anymore!
This is where it ends: I'll put a bullet in my head
And yes, drop dead!
This is where it ends, this is where I will draw the line:
- Excuse me while
I Kill myself.
07 Blood & Tears (04:15)
What is it that we're struggling for?
I don't quite see it anymore.
Life kicks us in the teeth
yet something makes us crawl back for more.
Blood and tears upon the altar of our lives we shed.
Blood and tears until the sweet release we share in death.
Hours like days, weeks like years
Decades of tears
yet somehow..
We'll lose the things we've fighted for
Each rise is followed by a fall
We'll lose the ones we love, the ones we most adore
Yet go on.. we go on
Blood and tears upon the altar of our lives we shed.
Blood and tears until the sweet release we share in death.
Hours like days, weeks like years
Decades of tears
Yet somehow everything seems so worthwhile
for a moment
What is it that we're waiting for?
Looking forward to, preparing for?
Life kicks us in the teeth
Yet something makes us crawl back for more
Blood and tears upon the altar of our lives we shed.
Blood and tears until the sweet release we share in death.
Hours like days, weeks like years
Decades of tears
Yet somehow everything seems so worthwhile
for a moment
09 Guilt and Regret (03:44)
Guilt and Regret, they are my two inbred brothers
Guilt and Regret
O god how I hate them both from the bottom of my heart
Guilt and Regret and me wake up into a brand new day
Guilt and Regret lively
I am still dead tired - the night has been long and hard
My brothers they ask me:
"Do you recall anything from yester-night, no?"
They laugh at me and go:
"Nothing at all? Well, it must have been an evening of joy"
Guilt and Regret
O god how I hate them both from the bottom of my heart
Each morning like this they come, uninvited
Pale as ghosts, reeking of compost
Yet most I abhor their bloodshot eyes
My brothers they ask me:
"Do you recall anything from yester-night, no?"
They laugh at me and go:
"Nothing at all? Well, it must have been an evening of joy"
My brothers they tease me:
"Do you remember anything from yester-night, no?"
They laugh at me and go:
"O sure you do, we buried our little sister Hope"
Guilt and Regret and me - what a twisted family we are
Guilt and Regret
O god, how I hate you both from the bottom of my heart
11 No One There (06:14)
The axe, the bottle, and the rope
The feeling there really is no more hope
The thought of the great unknown
And facing it alone
The dark, the silent, and the cold
The feeling I have come to the end of my road
Yes these are the things I spend my remaining moments with
And the wind blows through my heart
Shivers me one last time
As I now reach out in the dark
No one there
Why did it have to be so hard
For us to live our lives
Again I reach out in the dark in despair
The desperation and the snow
The feeling of finally coming back home
The melancholy and the hole in the soil so hard and cold
And the wind blows through my heart
Shivers me one last time
As I now reach out in the dark
No one there
Your love for me, my love for you
Things we somehow managed to lose
Now there's only the ruthless wind
To blow right through
If freezes my heart, my desperate heart
If freezes my heart, my desperate heart
If freezes my heart, my desperate heart
To think we both will die alone
And the wind blows through my heart
Shivers me one last time
As I now reach out in the dark
No one there
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Other reviews
By wwwhatemoornet
If you can’t stand HIM and their "love metal" (brrrrrr... gives me chills just to write it) go read something else because this CD is not for you.
"A coffin will be way too nice, a see-through plastic bag will do just fine" (The Luxury of a Grave) but we are not talking about a corpse, we are talking about how to hide the CD ;)
By Megadave#1
"Cross My Heart and Hope to Die is one of the most beautiful tracks on the album, with a well-crafted intertwining of arpeggios, an explosive chorus, and a chilling final solo."
"This album will not please everyone... But trust me... it is a masterpiece!!"
