Midas Fall: The Menagerie Inside

The music on this album is melancholy and beautiful and stirring. It also represents a change of pace from my usual discussions of extreme metal. I don't mind; even the most resolute of metalheads needs to cleanse their musical palate from time to time. For those looking for a change of pace (or who are already in love with eclectic approaches to post-rock), this album is worth discovering and re-discovering. The music on this album has no strict genre, but will certainly sound familiar to anyone who enjoys original music played with the flair of indie rock and the eclecticism of post-rock, showgaze, and progressive rock. It's also impressive that the music was recorded live, a point that, to me, gives the expansiveness of the music a little more urgency. Midas Fall has never recorded an album live in the studio before; it's impressive to know that the band wants to connect with fans outside of the club in ways that reflect the experience of a live show. Better still, the music has an intimate quality from start to finish, as if listeners are being welcomed into a larger discussion about the circumstances of life, its rises and falls, and the way that music soothes even the most restless of hearts.

One of the main draws of this album is certainly Elizabeth Heaton's vocals. Clear and engaging, thoughtful and beautiful, Heaton's voice blends moments of beauty and sincerity with that quality that we sometimes call "haunting." I'm not trying to disparage that label by putting it in quotes; my point is only to suggest that we don't always know exactly what we mean when we use it. Heaton's voice is haunting because it is simultaneously yearning as well as powerful, as though it were the voice of a ghost that wants to understand and communicate. Next to Heaton, the band goes about its business in an unassuming and competent style. All the parts play together, fusing sound and beat and note to create the overall experience.

I was also pleased with the way the album followed the music without forcing any particular emotion on me. Even the more emotive songs resisted wrenching my heart and my ears toward a predetermined end. Instead, I was able to sit back and enjoy things as they unfolded. And they unfolded with a grace and a power that I found astounding. Check out "Tramadol Baby" and "Holes" and "A Song Built from Scraps of Paper." The album begins and ends well and wastes nothing. Put it on for your next walk or for a long drive. Put it on for a quiet hour, an escape from the world. Beautiful and powerful, this album is a must-hear. Oh, and if you listen carefully, you'll even hear electronic handclaps on one of the tracks!

Track Listing:
1. Push
2. Afterthought
3. Circus Performer
4. Counting Colours
5. Low
6. The Morning Asked and I Said No
7. Tramadol Baby
8. Half a Mile Outside
9. A Song Built from Scraps of Paper
10. Holes

Added: October 1st 2015
Reviewer: Carl Sederholm
Score:
Related Link: band website
Hits: 1841
Language: english

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