Customer Reviews

Solar Soul

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

damn you, Samael! a number of tracks are so catchy that i can't get them out of my head, and i just *have* to listen to them again and again! i know this is not typical for metal, but this is not exactly metal... sort of like Die Krupps meets Electric Hellfire Club with nods to KMFDM and Rammstein?

if i had to place it in a genre, i'd say Neue Deutsche Harte, the same general space as Rammstein and Tanzwut. thematically, it appears very influenced by singularity/extropian/transhumanist thinking, sort of Ray Kurzweil/Roger Penrose with a distinct magical/mystical bent. very positive energy, love the lyrics, a bit cheesy but still very very clever and definitely a breath of fresh air after the "satan is great, blah blah blah" of traditional black metal. "trust in providence, it will favour your undertakings", how's that ;)

favorites: Quasar Waves, no question the top track for me because of the original sound and *awesome* lyrics. also standout are Solar Soul, the title track, and Alliance.

now for the bad: it could be more musical, in particular we could do with some singing instead of chanting? and a few more laid back/instrumental passages to break up the sonic onslaught? a lot of songs are very similar, eg Ave=Olympus (but, on the other hand: they all *rock out* in a similar way, not sure if that's a bad thing?)

... and the really bad: as soon as I finish this review, I'm going to buy every single other Samael album on amazon... damn you Samael again.

Samael have released a true masterpiece.For me,this is their best album since Eternal.It really reminds me alot of that album-it has the same vibe and flow.It also has the drive of their earlier material but with a much more mature performance.They've hit on truly one of the better lps to come out this year.I give it an A+!

I ALREADY HAD CEREMONIES OF OPPOSITES AND THAT IS A KICK ASS ALBUM. I DIDN'T THINK ANYTHING THAT SAMAEL COULD PRODUCE WOULD TOP THAT. BUT I WAS WRONG. THIS CD IS A METAL OPUS. DARK MELODIC RIFFS, KILLER DRUMMING VOCALS FROM OUT OF THIS WORLD. THIS CD IS GREAT. WESTERN GROUND AND SUSPENDED TIME ARE GOOD TRACKS, BUT THIS WHOLE ALBUM IS GOOD NO FILLER. A MUST HAVE FOR ANY BLACK METAL COLLECTION. THE STYLE TO THIS IS SIMILAR TO SIGH'S IMAGINARY SONICSCAPE.

This album is proof why Samael is among the best bands ever to exist. Solar Sol is the perfect follow up to Reign of Light, and fuses in enough elements of their older work (later 90s, not early works) with their currently evolving style.

I consider REIGN OF LIGHT a good comeback album. It's not a great album, but at least tried to put Samael back on the heavy side instead of the more experimenting line that ETERNAL has.
One of my major critics to this album was the use and abuse of the mid tempos. But it has its memorable songs, though, like "Telepath", "High Above" or "Reign Of Light".

SOLAR SOUL continues what was offered in REIGN OF LIGHT, and tries to go further, with obvious attempts of going back to the PASSAGE times (a masterpiece that marked and after and before in their career; both in music and sound) with faster drums and double drum-kicks in many passages. Even so, the before mentioned return to brutality applies to only intros and arrangements. Most of the songs are mid tempo, a bit faster, a bit slower. But it's not enough to take off from the general monotony of the songs. The opener "Solar Soul" is just another song, compared to the great "Rain", that opened PASSAGE.
Then, "Valkyries' New Ride" and "Suspended Time" are the best songs in the album by far, with more strenght in general than the rest of the tracks. And to close the album you have three slow mid tempo songs. I mean, another fast song could have been great as a closure. Don't get me wrong. I don't think that speed is necessary to be heavy or extreme. Samael has never been an ultra-fast black metal fan, not even in their first albums. They have more slow songs than fast. PASSAGE does not have fast songs, but it compensates that with versatility, something this album lacks of; even when the efforts are at sight. SOLAR SOUL is asking for more speed some times...And not only more speed...More of something else...More complexity? the same magic that sourrounded PASSAGE?...

SAMAEL has fallen into a recipe that seems to be catchy. I found their music, which is their "own style", "easy to listen". They could have written at least 20 songs for this album, considering how simple their "own style" has become, to the point that I couldn't find any memorable track.

Don't get me wrong. The songs are good and prolix in general, nicely done, 100% Samael, but I think I just got to the point in which I need sonething more or different from the swiss quartet...

April 12th, 2008.