Metal Underground.com

Finland has managed to produce some of the most interesting forms of metal, especially in the last ten years. Over the course of this explosion of acts, it has become over saturated with melodic death metal bands to the point where everything seems like a haze. The difference between Finland and the rest of the world is that nearly every band has extremely talented musicians. One of the newer standout acts is Chaosweaver, a band with a name that tells you everything you need to know about what to expect....the unexpected.

If Dimmu Borgir and Cradle of Filth had a bloody devil child who dressed like Slipknot and come with a penchant for Moonspell, it would be Chaosweaver. It has been four years since the band stormed on the scene with the debut release “Puppetmaster of Pandemonium.” On “Enter the Realm of the Doppelgänger,” the band takes well crafted symphonic, classical, and industrial elements and “weaves” in the “chaos” of black metal with a healthy dose of goth for a cocktail that embodies the phrase “wolf in sheep’s clothing.” With plenty of activity to keep you awake, interested, and on the edge of your seat, this sophomore effort largely is a feast for the ears.

The opening tones of “A Red Dawn Rises” darkens to the black symphony of “Wings of Chaos,” which represents the closest the band gets to straight black metal (also check out the second half of “Infected”). Ironically, it is those little spells of indirection, best represented here, that guide the track on the thin border between the band’s sanity and madness. “Maelstrom of Black Light” is evil enraptured symphonic/power that challenges aimless genre tagging, however this song is one of the prime examples of how the synthesizers tend to overtake some of the songs, effectively choking out some the richness of its pure evil (also in the latter part of “Repulsion”).

“The Great Cosmic Serpent” yields contagious riffs and well placed pauses to demonstrate the broad range of Cypher Commander’s death/black growls. At times inhuman, his style fluctuates widely between guttural, typical black metal screeches and demonic laughs with high pitched yelps that hijack the evil insanity of King Diamond, but with a superior diabolic approach. Closely following that are the machine gun volleys and industrial side effects of the highly gratifying “Crystal Blue.” “Ragnarock Sunset,” is a lush combination classical, metal, gothic, and black with a sprinkle of spaghetti western for good measure.

Chaosweaver represents an engaging style of extreme metal that blends a healthy dose of symphonic, classical, and industrial elements with enough interesting tempo and time changes to keep me from getting lost in the haze of straight black metal. “Enter the Realm of the Doppelgänger” is a solid effort that should capture the attention of symphonic fans who dip their toes in the extreme, as well as extreme fans that long for something a little different than the norm.