October Falls
have two main sides: acoustic folk and melodic black metal. The sound strongly recalls early
Ulver
. After the all-acoustic
Marras
, the Finnish outfit explored its duality in two EPs and a split. Here, on its second full-length,
bolt their two sounds together. Four tracks, each at least eight minutes long, begin with calm acoustic picking before yielding to black metal's buzzsaw guitars. The harmonic sense is simple to the point of homogeneity. Melodies and harmonies pile on top of each other using bog-standard minor scales, and the total effect is saccharine. Yet out of the sameness arise some stirring moments.
"I"
and
"III"
work up swooning waltzes, while
"II"
barrels forward with colorful cymbal work.
"IV"
achieves a stormy glory that suggests
Metallica
's
"The Unforgiven"
with its hair down. The record is almost fatuously romantic, but its lyrical concerns with roots and nature help ground it somewhat. ~ Cosmo Lee