The River - In Situ
Its been a long time between drinks for UK's The River, their last full length came out way back in 2006 and that was the monumental "Drawing Down The Sun", they did released a EP in 2008 called "Broken Window" however. For a while there it seemed the future for the band was uncertain so it was a great day when this new album "In Situ" saw the light of day. I remember reading on various blogs that vocalist, Vicky Walters had departed the band and they were on the lookout for a new singer. This came as a major disappointment but i was relieved to see that Vicky sings on this album too. There seems to be much confusion over where she is indeed still a member of the band or just a hired-hand for studio work. Regardless of the situation, her vocal performance on this album is once again, breathtaking and pure perfection and that is all i care about right now. The River has in its ranks no other than Christian Leitch from the much missed band "Warning" and there is more than just few similarities between the two bands. The main difference is however The River's performance and production is more bombastic and crushing than Warning ever was who tended to be a sluggish Doom outfit most of the time. I have to say i loved the sound and production of the last full length album "Drawing Down The Sun", so its surprising they have decided to take on a more polished sound this time around. Polished doesn't mean any less heavy though as this album still crushes like a truck load of "biggest loser" contestants. "To Bring Closure" starts the album off in fine style with the guitar and bass sound creating a mammoth wall of sound and with Vicky's emotional vocals over the top of it creating a icy-cold atmosphere. The track is so good that the next track "Broken Spirit Theory" comes along unexpectedly. Its another great track, it is seriously, crushingly heavy and uses a martial drum section in the last half of the song the produces a unique twist to this doom-laden song. Next is the short, acoustic riffing of the title track. Again Jason Ludwig is a feature of the track, he really has something new to add to the Doom Metal genre with a approach verging on the avant-garde. "Like Clockwork, Little Happiness" is a bit of a weak point in the album, something didn't hit home with me on this track, not really what you would call a filler track but i just found it to be lacking a key ingredient somewhere. Moving onto the next track "Opaque" and its another crushing riff to move mountains. The album seems to take a even heavier sound at this point with the tracks building in intensity. Add to that the emotional vocals that ooze with despair and sadness and it creates a combination that is Doom Metal in its purest form. Some might say its impossible to be "real heavy" and "beautiful" at the same time but The River has nailed it 100%. Onto the next track "Lifer" which continues in the same vein but with a engrossing vocal melody line. Next up is a interlude called...wait for it, "Interlude" and its exactly that and not much more. The final track "Frailties" is a bleak epic of a track with the emphasis on the vocals. Musically its more about experimentation, so much so that at around the 10 minute mark the track stops and you have to wait another 5 minutes for what seems like a totally un-related instrumental track. I didn't even know this track was on there at first till i took noticed of the 18 minute running time of the track and wondered what in the hell am i missing? At the end of the day, people will compare this with "Drawing Down The Sun" and may be a little put off with the more glossy production. I didn't have such problems with the disc but it was always going to be a hard task to outdo its predecessor which drained the life out of you while listening. This album takes a bit more time to fully absorb but its worth it in the end, it just isn't start to finish solid material like the previous full length. The River have added something new to the Doom scene, some people are already calling it romantic doom but that just cheapens what they are trying to do. This is heavy, bleak and beautiful all rolled into the one package, no other way to describe it.
1. To Bring Closure
2. Broken Spirit Theory
3. In Situ
4.
Like Clockwork, Little Happiness
5. Opaque
6. Lifer
7.
Interlude
8. Frailties
