19 August 2011
Undecimber: 'Seven Nights of Sin' Review
The members of Swedish goth band Undecimber were drawn together by a mutual love of dark and heavy music laced with haunting lyrics telling tragic stories of gothic romance. The initial run of their album Seven Nights of Sin sold out within two weeks of its release this spring, and one of its tracks, 'Poison Within' has been included on the sampler CDs of Metal Hammer and Germany's Legacy Magazine.
The album is a collection of deeply gothic and melodic tunes that will find a way right into your bones. The opening track, 'Death By Design' has clear electro influences, and has something very 'European' weaved into the sound. Vocalist Patrik Ransäter's voice is deep and gutteral, strongly leading the upbeat, catchy song that I have actually been singing in the shower.
The industrial influences mix well with the more traditional gothic edge, with orchestralistic sweeping notes sitting comfortably over the rhythmic and pounding sound of the synthesizer. Undecimber have expertly woven romantic ideas of historic sensibilities with strands of modern electronica. Tracks such as 'The Wicked' and 'Darkness' work equally well on a DJ's set list as they do for a chilled out night at home.
'Demon My Love' is a stunningly romantic track which brings the CD further back towards its gothic tendencies, strongly led by the vocals and lyrics. Its industrial swayings are more subtle, allowing the dark edge to lead the way. This is mirrored again in 'Take This Life' which is stripped right back to little more than the vocals backed by a piano. It's a song to bring tears to your eyes, and to take up permanent residence in your heart. Underneath the industrial hardness, Undecimber is a band of hopeless romantics, always looking for love in the darkness around them. It's a stand-out track which leaves me desperate for an acoustic or unplugged version of the album.
After decades of music imported from America, many UK rock fans are now looking in the other direction and seeking out new bands from Europe: and one thing Europe does very well is gothic music. Maybe it's the influence of all those thick, dark forests, or the unforgiving mountain ranges, or the months of darkness in Northern Europe. Either way, they are absolute experts at weaving a true sense of darkness into their music, the kind of darkness that speaks to the gothic, dreamy side of us. And Undecimber are no exception. They have so deeply grasped hold of that darkness and laced their whole album with it. They pull it this way and that, forming it into something quite unusual, and managing to pull such beauty from something that could have ended up being quite hard and unforgiving.
Seven Nights of Sin is a truly fantastic album that brings together all the different faces of gothic music to create a stunning hybrid creature dressed in every shade of darkness. You can catch Undecimber live on November 3rd at The Resolution in Whitby.
The album is a collection of deeply gothic and melodic tunes that will find a way right into your bones. The opening track, 'Death By Design' has clear electro influences, and has something very 'European' weaved into the sound. Vocalist Patrik Ransäter's voice is deep and gutteral, strongly leading the upbeat, catchy song that I have actually been singing in the shower.
The industrial influences mix well with the more traditional gothic edge, with orchestralistic sweeping notes sitting comfortably over the rhythmic and pounding sound of the synthesizer. Undecimber have expertly woven romantic ideas of historic sensibilities with strands of modern electronica. Tracks such as 'The Wicked' and 'Darkness' work equally well on a DJ's set list as they do for a chilled out night at home.
'Demon My Love' is a stunningly romantic track which brings the CD further back towards its gothic tendencies, strongly led by the vocals and lyrics. Its industrial swayings are more subtle, allowing the dark edge to lead the way. This is mirrored again in 'Take This Life' which is stripped right back to little more than the vocals backed by a piano. It's a song to bring tears to your eyes, and to take up permanent residence in your heart. Underneath the industrial hardness, Undecimber is a band of hopeless romantics, always looking for love in the darkness around them. It's a stand-out track which leaves me desperate for an acoustic or unplugged version of the album.
After decades of music imported from America, many UK rock fans are now looking in the other direction and seeking out new bands from Europe: and one thing Europe does very well is gothic music. Maybe it's the influence of all those thick, dark forests, or the unforgiving mountain ranges, or the months of darkness in Northern Europe. Either way, they are absolute experts at weaving a true sense of darkness into their music, the kind of darkness that speaks to the gothic, dreamy side of us. And Undecimber are no exception. They have so deeply grasped hold of that darkness and laced their whole album with it. They pull it this way and that, forming it into something quite unusual, and managing to pull such beauty from something that could have ended up being quite hard and unforgiving.
Seven Nights of Sin is a truly fantastic album that brings together all the different faces of gothic music to create a stunning hybrid creature dressed in every shade of darkness. You can catch Undecimber live on November 3rd at The Resolution in Whitby.
Article written by...
Keller is EGL Magazine's editor. She has a degree in Creative Writing and is a published horror and fantasy writer. She loves punk and rockabilly, roller derby, and creepy foreign horror movies.
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