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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Katatonia masterpiece!, November 10, 2009
This review is from: Night Is the New Day (Audio CD)
I just had to add to the other five-star reviews here, and say that this is a stunning album from this sadly underrated band (at least here in the United States of Musical Ignorance), but hopefully will still bring them the acclaim they deserve. My immediate response upon hearing this was that it was the album I've been waiting for Katatonia to make since I first heard Last Fair Deal Gone Down. While I loved the previous two releases (especially Viva Emptiness) I didn't hear the sheer creativity of composition evident in Last Fair Deal, and while that has remained my favorite Katatonia record, it is also a bit underwhelming in the production department - great songs and lots of atmosphere, but all beneath a sort of muddy curtain of sound. This new one is crisp and defined in the production department, while overall being perhaps their least heavy album ever. Don't let the first song Forsaker fool you. After that, you'll hear an album full of contrasts: heavy passages, acoustic interludes, electronics, keyboards, and what I believe to be, the always-awesome mellotron! Jonas Renske's vocals are also the best I've heard from him yet - still monotone-ish (in that great Katatonia way) and as always haunting and moody. But there seems to be a new approach to the singing on these songs that makes the vocals fit with the music better than ever before. You may actually be surprised at how mellow and laid back some of these songs are, but rest assured, it's still Katatonia all the way. In a just world, they would be the biggest metal band on the planet right now. A great, great album!
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Depth is something rarely found...., November 10, 2009
This review is from: Night Is the New Day (Audio CD)
Its a rare feat for an album to so absolutely encompass beauty and darkness, and the overall atmosphere that goes with those to subjects. Then it goes without saying that 'Night is the New Day' is one of but a handful that scratch that itch with exactly the right sound and depth.
This album is so diverse in the way it sounds and yet so cohesive that it truly blew me away the first listen through. I put it on again and listened to it all the way through a second time and started to see this landscape of emotion that Katatonia have created, and it floored me. It all flows together so well, and builds to the emotional crescendo on "Departer", where Krister Linder adds his haunting vocals to the mix. Its hard not to be touched at some level by almost all of the songs on the album. "Forsaker" opens the album aggresively enough to shake you but is gentle enough to lure you in to a sense of uneasy calm, then your led into "The Longest Year" which is going to be considered a standout song in Katatonia's career for years to come. "Liberation" is another track that rips into you and demands you peer into its soul and all the while it refuses to let go giving you the sense of despair Jonas Renske is conveying.
Other stand out tracks: Let me say, I find it very VERY hard to say that all the tracks on any album are excellent, but in this case I can't single out any song that I wouldn't listen to. I can spin this album all the way through, then put it on again without batting an eye. I can't praise Katatonia and crew enough for putting out something of this magnitude, and I can say with the utmost certainty that this will go down as one of the great albums for this entire genre of music, and definately one of the bright highlights of the bands career.
Say what you will, but this album is a no brainer purchase and one of the best albums in the past few years... and is proof enough that taking the time to carefully create something can pay off in spades.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Less "Dark"--Still Magical, November 10, 2009
This review is from: Night Is the New Day (Audio CD)
There is a very special place in my heart for Katatonia. About three years ago I randomly picked up the album "Viva Emptiness," and was treated to a magical formula of pretty fresh hard rock/metal combined with the most superb penmanship from one Jonas Renske. Katatonia dislodged "Misery Loves Co." as this writer's favorite band of all time. Katatonia filled a void for something I didn't realize I was lacking; somber, melancholic--darkness. (For my definition of "dark," the lyrics to "Criminals" should suffice.)
Their last album took this to a whole different plane, though the theme wasn't quite as dark as the subject matter on songs such as say, "Criminals," the musicianship was pushed another notch, and Renske still pens verbal poetry like a gothic madman.
I put all that down to give you, the reader, what I was expecting when I eagerly found out that "Night is the New Day" was dropping in November. I was expecting quite a bit...
The first track, "Forsaker," is hands down the most melodic Katatonia song I've ever heard... the rather simplistic initial guitar riff offset by a strong harmonic chorus of singing that powers through the mix. And the lyrics... "The dark will rise, dread the new freedom! Give up the right to find your true self; Forsake your own reason..." then softly singing the accusation: "forsaker... forsaker...!" The song mellows out again for a very Pink-Floydish solo before repeating the chorus... the song moving for another nice melodic section carrying another new musical theme.
Though, the first set of lyrics I thought I'd heard was "The dark will rise, grant the new freedom, devour the right to find your true self; forsake your only son..." As you can tell there is a great deal of difference between what I expected and what is actually there. These lyrics are completely different from each other.
The title track displays more electronics than the band has dabbled in before, and is good in its own right. Track 3, "Idle Blood," is a very "Porcupine Tree" kind of song, turning reminiscent of Opeth's "Damnation" album about 3:30 or so, with synth strings and Rhodes-like organ moving to completion.
Overall this album displays a much broader range of musical ability, lost quite a bit since "The Last Fair Deal Gone Down." Not that I'm slamming the last two albums by any stretch, but this is probably the best comparison album for general style.
Track 5 starts to pick up energy again, the band chugging in some simple drop-d-tuned-down to A before moving into another broad and open expanse of intricate melody. Electro-industrial kicks in a bit at 2:30 leading up to an interlude that starts to remind me yet again of Opeth at 3:00.
The biggest surprise to me is the song "Promise of Deceit." This song starts out with a very industrial beginning and slowly fades in some complexity in the form of some pretty and clean arpeggiated electric guitar. It is slightly reminiscent of "Soil's Song" when all is said and done, though nowhere near as dirge-like. Another favorite for me is the epic "Ashen," a song that combines elements from nearly the entire past ten years of their work. The album closer, "Departer," almost conjures a bit of Bjork as Jonas invokes a falsetto before the album ends on a very mysterious and haunting note.
In conclusion, though this album is by no means anywhere near as dark as the last two... they make up for this in the quality of musicianship; they've outclassed themselves on every level on this album. I have to say I do miss the ultra-dark and heavy atmosphere promised by "Forsaken," hinting at the previous two albums... but I would be a hypocrite if I stood here and bitched that they didn't write another version of either of those. I wish it was darker, but that's personal preference getting in the way of objectivity. This album is a big step forward to a new plane for the band; it sounds like absolutely nothing they've done before, and though I can't say I love it as much as the previous two, I give credit where its due, and this might be one of the best of the year in terms of style and scope.
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is Katatonia's 9th studio release. Browse Katatonia's Discography 
