Sleep of Monsters: Produces Reason

I like the clever turn of phrase on Goya's famous painting The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters. It seems fitting to think about what might happen when monsters sleep. Still, I wonder if monsters should ever sleep completely. Reason is often mixed with irrationality and monsters sometimes bring out the best of humanity.

As for Produces Reason, the album has been available only in Finland until now. I'm not sure what kind of reception it's had in Finland, but I think many listeners will want to check this album out if only because it features vocals by Vil, the singer for the influential occult rock band Babylon Whores. Vil has a rich voice, thick and deep, the kind many people will associate with Glenn Danzig and others. For better or worse, this type of singing has a somewhat gothic quality to it, as though it were the sound of the dead.

As for the album, it has a nice atmospheric quality, one that is frequently backed up by pleasant female vocals. The band's promo materials compare them to Pink Floyd's backing vocalists. I thought that was accurate. There are also quite a few twists and turns on literary texts in the lyrics that give the album a playful, artsy, aspect. The music here aspires to the condition of art but also prides itself on its accessibility to the widest possible audience. Unfortunately, I found the ambition to be more interesting in the lyrics than in the music. The music is actually pretty disappointing. Sure, there's no lack of talent performing on this album, but the whole thing is too mid-tempo, giving the impression that every song is cut from the same cloth. There are probably die-hard fans of this album who will disagree, but I think this release is best suited for those who like rock with a slightly gothic mood. I would have liked something a little edgier from a project as ambitious as this one.

Track Listing:
1. Holy Holy Holy
2. Nihil Nihil Nihil
3. Abomination Street
4. Murder She Wrote
5. Our Savage God
6. Christsonday
7. Horses of the Sun
8. Through a Mirror Darkly
9. Cobwebs of Your Mind
10. Magick without Tears
11. I am the Night Color me Black

Added: November 15th 2014
Reviewer: Carl Sederholm
Score:
Related Link: Band Facebook Page
Hits: 2340
Language: english

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