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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Heavier, More Aggressive Borknagar, March 14, 2005
Where "The Archaic Course" showcased Borknagar's fascination with nature and took more of a majestic Viking metal route, the sound on 2000's "Quintessence" is more focused on songwriting, and is, simply put, more aggressive and well... heavier!
Speeding down a path of musical and intellectual evolution, Borknagar changed themselved from the inside out here. The lyrics focus on science and universal mysteries rather than nature-themed lyrics on previous outings. Definitely provokes the listener to think, despite their obscurity, which may caise a few eyebrows to raise. But the lyrics are descriptive and beautiful nonetheless. These are by far some of the best lyrics I have seen in metal, alongside Agalloch, Dissection, and Emperor, among others.
The guitars and drums have sped up consistently and now collaborate together impeccably. There are a lot of intricate fills on the drums, and much more in-your-fave double bass. All around, it's a fresh awakening from the "wall of noise" production used on previous albums. However, the guitars are a little too distorted and muddy for their own good, and sometimes clashes with the keyboards, which are more up-front than "The Archaic Course". They weave pompous and majestic melodies throughout the album, giving this album quite an ethereal atmosphere.
Vortex now does bass and vocals. He still has one of the best clean voices in metal, but he does more screaming, which is much more visceral and venomous than before. His all-around vocal job is more steady, and he busts out some beautiful vocal harmonies on "Colossus" and "Revolt".
1. Rivalry of Phantoms- Storms into a frenzy of triumphant guitar melodies, with some great organs underlying the storming and intricate drumwork. A strong opening track, and shows what to expect on the album. 5/5
2. The Presence is Ominus- Vortex double-layers his vocals here of clean and his hateful rasps. The guitars weave some great melodies, and the drums are outstanding! The lyrics are really good too. 5/5
3. Ruins of the Future- My favorite song. This song is faster with some catchy guitar work and stampeding drumwork. It later breaks down and Vortex gives one of his best performances here. 5/5
4. Colossus- Stunning! A pounding rhythm coupled with Vortex's opeatic clean vocal create a larger than life atmosphere, and you just feel like raising your fist to the sky when hearing this. The best song on the album. 5/5
5. Inner Landscape- A nice little interlude that showcases the somewhat hidden keyboards. A nice break from the chaos, but a bit unfitting. 3/5
6. Invincible- The pace picks back up with storming double bass. The verses shows a nice technical side of the band, and the keyboards add a triumphant feel here. The guitars are great as well. This song isn't too memorable, but the lyrics compensate for it. 4/5
7. Icon Dreams- More double-layered vocals here, which are interesting but catchy, and the tempo sets an epic mood. Again, not very memorable, but it has its moments. 4/5
8. Genesis Torn- Another great song. Has a booming chorus which will stick in your head for days, and the keyboard work woven with the guitars is impeccable. This sums up the album best, and has a lot of tempo changes. A great song. 5/5
9. Embers- Serves as somewhat of an intro to the grand finale of "Revolt". Truly beautiful guitar work.... 4/5
10. Revolt- Awesome... Vortex gives his most emotional vocal performance here, and the mood is almost mournful. A great closing song. 5/5
My only complaint here is the crowded production. I would reccommend this to fans of avant-garde or proggressive metal. Another great CD from Borknagar.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Pretty good extreme metal., December 19, 2002
If you enjoy black metal with a more melodic approach, you may enjoy this. Borknagar use pretty standard thrash style guitars, laced with keyboard/synth music, and fast rhythmic drumming. On this album the band seems to wind in and out from sudden bursts of chaotic noise to dark melodies. Borknagar do not stay on one musical path, you don't know what to expect on the next song or even the next chorus. You can here the "old-school" influences but they have an original take on black metal. The album goes in all directions! One problem with the album I found was that the vocals strayed to almost ridiculous at some points (kind of like a whiny six year old with mucous in his throat), but they have superb vocals through out most of the album. The band does not stick to one vocal style, there are clean vocals, black metal vocals, and average heavy metal vocals. The lyrics are excellent and poetic, the music is complex and varied. My favorite songs are "Colossus," and "Revolt." I'd say that if you are into Agathodaimon, EmpEroR, CoF, Dimmu Borgir, or maybe Gorgoroth, or even some who are into melodic death metal would probably want to check this CD out!
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Borknagar - Quintessence, November 12, 2002
By A Customer
This is the first Borknagar album I was privy to, and the first black metal release I actually enjoyed.Listeners that are new to black metal may not quite appreciate the raspy, harsh "black metal" vocals at first. However, they are an acquired taste, and one would soon prefer them to any other sort of vocal style, in the metal genre. The operatics found in "Colossus" and "Revolt", most notably, are quite stunning; singer I.C.S. Vortex is quite easily one of the best vocalists in the metal style of music. Another point of interest is the actual overdubbing screaming vocals with clean vocals, such as on "The Prescence is Ominous", and "Rivalry of Phantoms". A good mix, but an odd one nonetheless. Oystein G. Brun's guitar work and songwriting/arranging is impeccable on this album, leaving no flaws that I can detect. The lyrics make no sense whatsoever, but they do flow quite well. I don't believe that he has a very good grasp of the english language. There is enough synth on this album to make it incredibly complex, but it is still not overpowering. All in all, this is the best album for you to buy if you are new to Black Metal, and you want to ease yourself into the sound.
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