Enter the world of symphonic, gothic, atmospheric, doomy death metal on Frozen Images, the latest from Poland's Cemetery of Scream. Their previous release from 2006, The Event Horizon, laid the groundwork for what we have here, an effective meshing of gothic rock and death metal, fueled by plenty of atmospheric and symphonic elements. Vocals are a combination of male (both clean and growled) and female vocals, though the male are dominant, handled by Olaf Rozanski. When he's doing the melodic thing, he's got the gothic flavor down pat, and his growls are actually quite unique, so when paired up with the guest female vocals of Marta Mucha, the results are rich, varied, and rewarding. Best examples of all three vocal styles are heard on the catchy "Prince of the City's Lights", a crunchy goth rocker with elements of pop and death metal, and the soaring "Bluebird". For more extreme fare, there's "Cat's Grin", "Million as One (As a Million)", "Black Flowers", and the crushing "Sapphire Sun", each one littered with monstrous guitar riffs, plenty of keyboards, pounding rhythms, and growled vocals. The band's take on the Moody Blues classic "Nights in White Satin" gives this piece a gothic/symphonic metal flavor, and it's quite refreshing to hear.
Otherwise, the majority of the tracks are of a more gothic, symphonic nature with a hint of doom, so if some of the early work of Anathema, My Dying Bride, Paradise Lost, Moonspell, Amorphis, or Katatonia is your thing, you'll no doubt really enjoy Frozen Images. The great thing about this CD is there's plenty of variety to be found, and the contrast of vocal styles and layers of instrumentation make it an intriguing listen. So if you are looking for something a little different from all the standard death metal, black metal, and metalcore that's readily available these days, check out this winner from the Polish metal scene.
Track Listing
1. Bluebird
2. Prince of the City's Lights
3. Cat's Grin
4. Bridge of Ashes
5. In Your Blood
6. Golden Lullaby
7. Ritual Fire Dance
8. Black Flowers
9. Million as One (As a Million)
10. Geisha out of Dreams
11. Sapphire Sun
12. Nights in White Satin-bonus Moody Blues cover tune
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