To like this stuff, ya gotta love this kind of stuff.
Anorexia Nervosa plays all-out full-throttle death metal, but it's backed by
huge soundscapes of keyboards, and the sounds of choirs and keyboards. The
French quintet has been around for 5 CDs and 10 years, and they've perfected
their craft to the point that extreme-metalheads would kill to get their hands
on this record. Make no mistake - despite the lush soundscapes, this isn't as
orchestral as Cradle Of Filth or as progressive as Dimmy Borgir - with whom
they're often compared. They're in the same league as those bands, but the metal
is heavier and the growling more deadly.
The 7 longish songs take plenty of time to develop into emotionally charged
pieces with plenty of variety. Well - variety is relative. If you're not into
death metal you'll think this is one song played 7 times over. But if you're an
extreme metal fan you'll appreciate the distinction between the songs and the
rich sonic backdrops. Closing cut "The Sacrament" is more mellow and more
orchestral than anything else on the CD, while "Worship Manifesto" - one of the
record's more important standout tracks - has more of those choral tones,
cleaner guitars, and a section of low-pitched half-spoken, half-sung clean
vocals that will draw at the heartstrings. "Antiferno" is interesting, with its
clean, spoken vocals, deep male keyboard-driven chorus and choirs of
high-pitched female singing - all offset by by those death metal elements.
the vocals are mostly a monotonous high-pitched shriek that never lets up and
leaves little space for instrumental sections. Rare clean vocals, often in an
emotional spoken voice, add rare touches of extra texture. The guitars are
mostly highly-distorted double paced power chords paying standard sequences.
It's the subtleties behind those sounds that set this apart.
Well produced, well executed, but heavy as hell. Recommended to extreme-metal
heads.
Track Listing:
1. Shining
2. Antinferno
3. Sister September
4. Worship Manifesto
5. Codex-Veritas
6. Amen
7. Sacrament
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