Beyond My Grey Wake

How Like a Winter | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 4, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Martyr Music Group
• ASIN: B00008NG9H
• Also Available in: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #293,636 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lengthy Music with Desolate Overtones, May 15, 2005

By 

Jane Dulay - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beyond My Grey Wake (Audio CD)

How Like a Winter receive their name from a Shakespeare sonnet and their lyrics are greatly influenced by him.

The CD starts out with A Flower That Sears in Silence which is a great doom laden song. Expressive growls by pianist/vocalist Dust start the song off as female voices chime in during the later parts of the song.

The next song, All the Seasons of Madness, which I believe to be the highlight of the album, is a lengthy song (7:57) that changes greatly throughout the entire piece. The song starts off with the band members chanting, "I hope into this morning..." and is then torn apart by growling. Slow passages soon embrace the listener and a violin comes in. The song is changed in tempo throughout the entire song, but goes back to its original lyrics and tone towards the end.

Laying Together Again starts off with a lengthy piano solo and clean male vocals come in towards the middle. The song's vocals are mostly chanted and create a desolate mood while female vocals offset the chorus.

Bescreen'd, is in vain of Shakespeare's balcony scene in Romeo and Juliet and is also a lengthy song (10:37), but unlike All the Seasons of Madness, it keeps its tempo consistent throughout the entire song. There is no growling in this song, only clean male vocals and the violin is heard here perhaps the most in any track.

Who is Hiding, is an instrumental piano solo reminiscent of romantic period composers. While it's their shortest song, it still has much to offer. Dust really showcases his piano skills in this track leaving the listener wishing the song would be longer.

Crucifige is one of the more faced paced songs on the album. It starts off with sounds of nails being hit onto a cross. Vocals are both growled and clean in this piece which adds variety, while female vocals are only heard to the end when reciting a passage from the bible with the male counterpart.

In XCVII, the band displays their love for Shakespeare by creating a song in which they get their name. Only the piano and violin are mostly heard throughout this song while the male vocals are more spoken than sung. The female voice takes hold after every quatrain (4 lines in a sonnet) in a quite operatic feel.

The Night, Then Him starts off with about a minute of abstract noises. Growling soon interrupts the beginning in which female voices sing amidst them. A short violin solo leads way to female singing in which then leads to more growling.

How Like a Winter end their album with an instrumental, So Death Would Be Just a Bad Dream. It's mostly a piano solo once again. Towards the end of the song, silence occurs for a couple of minutes and then the listener hears chanting to finish off the record.

All in all, HLAW is not for everyone. Many will be dismissed just from looking at their name. It should be noted, however, that HLAW's music is far from being clichéd. Many may argue the My Dying Bride influences, but they create music of their own leading the listener with a cold kiss in their heart.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Most depressing album I've ever heard, June 23, 2004

By 

Tom Z "Crucible Of Steel" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beyond My Grey Wake (Audio CD)

First of all I'd like to congratulate you for finding this rare gem cause not many people are this far into underground metal. Now onto the review, as I've said above this is the most depressing album I've ever heard. The music is remiscent of early My Dying Bride and the whole album just carries an atmosphere of sadness. There are three vocalists, two female singers and a male vocalist who does the growling vocals and also sings. All of them do a very good job, the female singers sound sort of cold and distant.(I mean that in a good way)and the male singer sounds like Mike Ackerfeldr(Opeth) during the death metal metal parts and sort of like Johan Edlunds(Tiamat) or that guy from Theatre of Tradgedy during the clean parts. This is one of the only bands I know of that features a violinist as a full time member and they use the violin in places many other bands would use keyboards. I know what your thinking: violin, female vocals mixed with death metal, sounds pretty cliche dosen't it? I can tell with full confidence that HLAW pulls it off extradonarily well though. Where other bands oversaturate their music with exotic instruments to make up for a lack of ideas, HLAW uses them only when it is neccassary. I would give this a 5 stars but some of the songs drag on and they take the Shakespeare lyrical influences over the top sometimes. This is their first album, so some mistakes are to be expected. Definitly has the potential to take the top doom metal spot away from My Dying Bride in the future. I recommend checking out My Dying Bride, Katatonia, Anathema, Tristania, Sirenia or Tiamat in addition to this.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars tears, May 3, 2005

By 

deus ex mecca (Miami, FL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beyond My Grey Wake (Audio CD)

I know I have been pushing it by listing some bands under the Gothic category simply by throwing in Gothic Metal, but you have to understand, through listening to the album, there are so many gothic atmosphere influences in the music. How Like A Winter is no exception. The music is that of Doom Metal, but let me say, it blends with a gothic melodic element. It has that certain symphony, and mind you, the music is very depressing. It is melancholic, beautiful and elegant. The voice in How Like A Winter is your typical Beauty and the Beast female/male vocals. The male vocal is very sombre and romantic, also very commanding. A standout song for me was "Bescreen'd," because when the vocals come alive, towards the middle of the song, it truly captures your attention. It commanderes your attention, making you listen to that all empowering Dracula depth voice. The passion in the male vocals is very deep, very literate and poetic. There is a life within the music itself, which makes it very attractive. The guitars are nothing too intense which cannot be listened to by the occasional metal ears. The elegance of this album lies in the fact that it's classical combined with doom combined with some elements of gothic atmosphere. Everything in sequence is beautiful, the strings make me want to tear up. No synthesizers here, all the music you hear are played by real musicians. Agony, the violinist, brings a deeper cut to the music. Recommended for anyone who listens to Theatre of Tragedy, Sirenia, and Virgin Black.