Tombs - "Winter Hours" (CD)
"Winter Hours" track listing:
1. Gossamer (5:23)
2. Golden Eyes (2:55)
3. Beneath The Toxic Jungle (4:24)
4. The Great Silence (3:42)
5. Story Of A Room (2:03)
6. The Divide (3:31)
7. Merrimack (3:49)
8. Filled With Secrets (5:14)
9. Seven Stars The Angel Of Death (3:29)
10. Old Dominion (1:29)
Reviewed by tankakern on August 22, 2009
Delivering a heavy atmosphere and sprawling soundscapes, Tombs’ "Winter Hours" is a sonically rich album. Featuring fuzzy, distorted guitar work and hard hitting drum beats, the album bathes the listener in subtle changes and melodies, with riffing that approaches an esoteric black metal sound. Despite these points, the album suffers severely from monotony about halfway through.
“Gossamer” kicks the album off with super distorted guitars and rhythmic drumming. The song also features some rousing guitar work. This is about how the whole album is played out. The riffing is definitely interesting and provoking, but the overly saturated, heavy sound gets tedious fast. The vocals change from heavy singing to angry growling. The sound in general almost sounds like a much heavier version of Baroness.
This is basically a post-metal album, in the vein of Isis and Cult of Luna. “Filled with Secrets” actually sounds a little bit like Isis’ old stuff, in that it features a long intro, followed by a super heavy turn.
"Winter Hours" is certainly not a bad album, but it doesn’t do a whole lot to distinguish itself from typical post-metal fare. The instrumental tracks are well placed and the riffs are well played. Both these factors make the album worth at least a listen through.
Highs: Well played album with intricate musicianship.
Lows: Heavy, distorted sound tends to get monotonous.
Bottom line: A well done post-metal album that, unfortunately, doesn't do anything memorable.
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