Featured Review #43: Graveward by Sigh

[Zeus 7997]

Artist: Sigh Album: Graveward 1. Kaedit Nos Pestis 2. Graveward 3. The Tombfiller 4. The Forlorn 5. The Molesters of My Soul 6. Out Of The Grave 7. The Trial by the Dead 8. The Casketburner 9. A Messenger from Tomorrow... I. The Message, II. Foreboding, III. Doomsday 10. Dwellers in Dream

Rating: | Are you brave enough to try?

 

Listening to a new Sigh record for the first time is an experience like no other. I'm sure by this point that the band tries to make each album larger, weirder, and more grandiose than the last. They've succeeded with flying colors for the last few attempts, and their tenth album "Graveward" refines the symphonic avant-garde direction birthed on 2010's "Scenes From Hell" and developed further with 2012's "In Somniphobia". A band that brands their metal as a "celluloid phantasmagoria" sounds pretentious to the core, but this is that odd band that actually can deliver what they promise. In fact, their music is so out there that their albums come with labels that warn that "if you find that some parts of this album are strange; it isn’t because the music is in itself strange, but because your conscious self is ill-equipped to comprehend the sounds produced on this recording". What a warning. I'll come out right now and say that there's not a single thing I would change about this album. I can't deny that "Graveward" is the product of a band that's been scraping every corner of their musical melting pot for over fifteen years. The compositions are as well-thought out and intriguing as ever, reflecting the two and a half years it took to compose and record, and they improve with each listen. The production is crisp, clean, and unusually devoid of any quirks. Every Sigh album has something about the mastering that's a bit off and this is the first time when the balancing act done in the studio between the metal antics of the band and the epic aspirations of the orchestra is nothing less than stupendous. I'm equally as impressed by how well the band plays with so many other instruments accompanying them: each song had over 100 recording tracks exceeding 100GB of audio to select from in the final mixes. There are even guest performances from Trivium's Matthew Heafy, DragonForce's Fred Leclercq, Shining Sweden's Niklas Kvarforth, Rotting Christ's Sakis Tolis, and The Meads of Asphodel's Metatron, although they are buried deep and are more Easter eggs than anything else. Most bands would crumble performing music this complex and yet Sigh makes it seem effortless. I almost take it for granted how memorable each song is and how good the flow of the album is.

From the entertaining opening melody, this is a relentless smorgasbord of every instrument you can think of and then some. This will either make or break your experience. I happen to find it too much fun for an album that revels in death, suffering, and the afterlife. I attribute most of this to the intentionally campy atmosphere which moves between tranquil, creepy, beautiful, tragic, and even menacing. The discretion shown with using these elements provides the maximum impact when they are in full swing like on "Kaedit nos Pestis" and "Graveward". Then the band has moments where they emphasize their metal side like on "The Forlorn", and "The Molesters of my Soul", and additional orchestrations support the band rather than compete for the user's attention. Then there's "A Message From Tomorrow", which is the climax to an already outstanding album. It's absolutely incredible and manages to remain a satisfying climax even if it departs from the thematic direction of the album. This track alone deserves a listen.

At its core, "Graveward" is very much a black metal record. But with so many elements, twists, turns, and strokes of genius, this album surpasses any type of simple classification. Its chaotic nature may come off as a gimmick to some, but even if it is, it's one that requires incredible amounts of musicianship to achieve. Those very same qualities make this album so much fun to listen to and leave me in awe at how creative one band can be. "Graveward" is not a record for everyone but it welcomes anyone to try it once.

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[Peace Heavy mk II 7200]

Fantastic album: probably one of the best albums of the year for me after the first listen. I love how they are a bizarre mix of super srs but campy at the same time.

 

Favorite song off of this CD is definitely The Tombfiller. Love how catchy it is! 

[Bear 1817]

Nice review!

 

Not the best but in my top five for sure. It's not my favourite Sigh-album either, far from it to be honest. But it's a very good album, and a grower for sure. The elements (mainly the production and new guitarist You) I didn't like in the begining I now like very much, and everything hits me. Even though I still think the production is very off and odd, like on Scenes From Hell. And despite all the recording tracks included it still comes off as one of their most straight-forward and easy-listening albums. I'd say only Scorn Defeat and Hangman's Hymn are more of an easy listening experience of all their albums.

 

 

Also, I adore the camp factor of the album. It gives it a nice horror film-score-esque feeling, which is something I am sure Mirai would love to hear as horror films inspire him quite a lot.

[Zeus 7997]

Nice review!

 

Not the best but in my top five for sure. It's not my favourite Sigh-album either, far from it to be honest. But it's a very good album, and a grower for sure. The elements (mainly the production and new guitarist You) I didn't like in the begining I now like very much, and everything hits me. Even though I still think the production is very off and odd, like on Scenes From Hell. And despite all the recording tracks included it still comes off as one of their most straight-forward and easy-listening albums. I'd say only Scorn Defeat and Hangman's Hymn are more of an easy listening experience of all their albums.

 

 

Also, I adore the camp factor of the album. It gives it a nice horror film-score-esque feeling, which is something I am sure Mirai would love to hear as horror films inspire him quite a lot.

 

I know I'm contradicting myself a bit with my next statement, but I played around with the equalizer on my media player for a bit. When I first started listening I thought that the mid-range was lacking, but to my surprise the album sounded better when the sub bass was increased by a notch. It really helps to push the metal aspects of the sound while leaving the orchestra more or less intact. And this is coming from someone who almost never messes with EQ! I know that Mirai and company take their music seriously, so I'm wondering if the discrepancy in sound is a result of the audio equipment they used. I'd love to get more information from Mirai about the recording process, if he's interested in humoring all my random questions.

 

Then again as I said every Sigh album has it's quirks about the production so for all I know it could have been intentional.

 

I'm hoping Jari from Wintersun takes notes on how to compose metal with hundreds of tracks at one time. Time I had as many tracks as Graveward and it sounded a huge mess. I had to bring that up as a positive in the review.

[Bear 1817]

I know I'm contradicting myself a bit with my next statement, but I played around with the equalizer on my media player for a bit. When I first started listening I thought that the mid-range was lacking, but to my surprise the album sounded better when the sub bass was increased by a notch. It really helps to push the metal aspects of the sound while leaving the orchestra more or less intact. And this is coming from someone who almost never messes with EQ! I know that Mirai and company take their music seriously, so I'm wondering if the discrepancy in sound is a result of the audio equipment they used. I'd love to get more information from Mirai about the recording process, if he's interested in humoring all my random questions.

 

To be honest I don't want to push the metal any further forward than what it already is. I want it to feel like a metallic horror score like it does now already. As far as Sigh's end product goes for certain albums (Graweward, Scenes From Hell, Gallows Gallery, Imaginay Sonicscape, Scenario IV: Dread Dreams) I am pretty sure it has to do with not having enough money to match their recording process to their ambitions. They're not exactly a band with a huge backing from a record company and lots of money to deal with.

 

Then again as I said every Sigh album has it's quirks about the production so for all I know it could have been intentional.

 

I don't get this statement at all. What exactly is it that you think it "quirky" about Scorn Defeat, Ghastly Funeral Theatre, Infidel Art, Hail Horror Hail, Hangman's Hymn and In Somniphobia's productions? I think all of these sound more than fine, and especially Scorn Defeat, Ghastly Funeral Theater, Infidel Art, Hail Horror Hail and Hangman's Hymn are up there with the best (aka most fittingly) produced black metal albums ever. Despite my huge knowledge of the genre I can't think of more than a handful of black metal albums which sounds better (aka more fitting) in terms of production. It's all a pleasure to my ear.

 

 

I don't mind the production for other albums either, even though some of them are very odd/off. I for one consider the original garage-rocky Gallows Gallery production to be among the coolest productions ever. It sounds so dirty and raw. But for this production however I have a full understanding as of why people don't like it at all.

 

I'm hoping Jari from Wintersun takes notes on how to compose metal with hundreds of tracks at one time. Time I had as many tracks as Graveward and it sounded a huge mess. I had to bring that up as a positive in the review.

 

I think Jari should just take notes on how to compose metal in general. Høhøhøh.

[Zeus 7997]

To be honest I don't want to push the metal any further forward than what it already is. I want it to feel like a metallic horror score like it does now already. As far as Sigh's end product goes for certain albums (Graweward, Scenes From Hell, Gallows Gallery, Imaginay Sonicscape, Scenario IV: Dread Dreams) I am pretty sure it has to do with not having enough money to match their recording process to their ambitions. They're not exactly a band with a huge backing from a record company and lots of money to deal with.

 

 

I don't get this statement at all. What exactly is it that you think it "quirky" about Scorn Defeat, Ghastly Funeral Theatre, Infidel Art, Hail Horror Hail, Hangman's Hymn and In Somniphobia's productions? I think all of these sound more than fine, and especially Scorn Defeat, Ghastly Funeral Theater, Infidel Art, Hail Horror Hail and Hangman's Hymn are up there with the best (aka most fittingly) produced black metal albums ever. Despite my huge knowledge of the genre I can't think of more than a handful of black metal albums which sounds better (aka more fitting) in terms of production. It's all a pleasure to my ear.

 

 

I don't mind the production for other albums either, even though some of them are very odd/off. I for one consider the original garage-rocky Gallows Gallery production to be among the coolest productions ever. It sounds so dirty and raw. But for this production however I have a full understanding as of why people don't like it at all.

I meant what you said above about not having enough money to realize their ambitions. They probably made conscious trade-offs in order to produce the best album they could. I'd have to go through and listen to each again to give you a more thorough breakdown of what albums I think have interesting production choices.

[Bear 1817]

It would be interesting to hear your thoughts on the albums I mentioned as more or less perfectly produced within their genre.

[Zeus 7997]

I'm not sure how many of my thoughts you will be able to hear for yourself. I listened once on my MP3 player and once at my computer with all the fancy, precise audio equipment. Before I begin, I have to really give it to Sigh. Each album of theirs has forgiving production which scales well across many different types of devices. There were times when I was able to pick out certain elements at my computer that I couldn't do with my MP3 player.

 

 

Scorn Defeat

 

Their most focused black metal release. The raw production on this album suits the music and is actually a plus not a minus. But it's the only album that's this raw and lacks the depths of supporting instrumentation later albums have, so it gets put into it's own group here.

 

Infidel Art / Ghastly Funeral Theatre / Hail Horror Hail

 

All three of these still have pretty raw, unpolished production but we can begin to see a shift towards their current sound even this far back. There's a clear focus on the guitar and other "major instruments" that carry the melody, which all in all is a really good choice.

 

Hangman's Hymn

 

I would describe the balance as 60% arrangements, 40% metal. There's something very "constrained" about the production to my ears. It's as if they knew that both stepping to their black metal sound while increasing the role and number of supporting instruments in the mix would make it difficult to balance in the studio, so they made conscious compromises all around. As such, nothing really stands out but nothing gets buried either.  The guitar reminds me somewhat of German thrash metal, so the guitar tone gives this album it's particular feel.

 

Scenes from Hell

 

This one is easy. The drum kit - especially the cymbals - have a distinctive tone to them. To be fair though, it's most pronounced on the drum fills for the opening track. Most of the time, it's buried deep enough in the mix to not be a problem.

 

In Somniphobia

 

This album has a rather flat rhythm guitar and punchy orchestral arrangements. It's guitar tone sounds like it was taken straight from demos they recorded in the 90's and after Hangman's Hymn and Scenes from Hell hearing the guitars take a backseat is way different. It became way more noticeable when comparing the opening of "Purgatorium" to the opening of either "Prelude to the Oracle" or "Kaedit Nos Pestis". I would label this as their most orchestrally focused release. Even though Graveward takes the cake in terms of how massive it is, it also does a better job of emphasizing the metal side of the band.