Customer Reviews

Songs for the Last View

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

 

 

I did not know what to expect from Lacrimas after the departure of Christopher Schmid. My impression after listening to Songs For the Last View is that it is a very good start for a junior vocalist and I expect the upcoming releases to bring more to our beloved band. Lacrimas kept changing their style over the years and they came a long way since they introduced their Dark Gothic metal albums but the later releases still adhere to the same Rock N Sad theme and Songs For the Last View still belongs there. I can't wait to hear their upcoming album and I'm sure it will be once again different. Life is about change after all. Nobody stays the same.

I got into LP fairly late in the game. As I eagerly awaited "Songs For the Last View", I immersed myself in most of their previous work (excluding the earlier, death metal type stuff). To me they were like a better version of HIM: less whiney, darker, and far heavier. LP quickly shot to the top of my fave list.

When I discovered the new album was going to have a new lead vocalist I can honestly say that it didn't worry me in the slightest... especially since the former vocalist was still going to be providing some input on the new album... How bad could they screw up a good thing, right?

Well, I found out just how bad with the release of the first single, "A Pearl". What the hell?! That was my reaction. The music was awesome... but the vocals sounded like absolute garbage! In complete denial, I chalked the horrible sound up to the fact that I was listening to it on YouTube which really was lacking in quality sound.

But alas, a high quality WAV listening did nothing to improve the sound of this guy's bad singing. Seriously, he sounds like a bad 50's movie monster or something. Actually, if you listen to the album as a whole, you'll hear there are times when he's NOT trying to sound exactly like the old vocalist... and those are the best moments on the album. But for most of the cd, he's desperately trying (and failing miserably) to sound like Chris... and the final product suffers because of it.

After a few listens I finally gave up and resigned to the fact that the cd sucks. My only hope now is that the next album will see the new vocalist just being himself. If that happens, there's hope for the band.

Lastly, I apologize for the lack of specificity with regards to tracks and what not, but at this point I'd just like to forget the album was ever made and hope for a brighter (yet darker) future.