Oblivion

"Hey this guy screams exactly like that very pissed off duck on the first Emperor album!" That's the only outstanding exotic feature you can shine a light on during listening to this record. Is there a genre called "symphonic background black metal"? Let's invent one, I'm sure you could name a few example bands without thinking too long, right?

Ceremonial Embrace employ super sweet and easily digestible keyboard melodies, unfortunately they forgot that not every one of their listeners(?) would be a thirteen year old with braces and a Bodom-Hoodie over...well, a Bodom-shirt. The sugary melodies jump and sweep all over the place, but in the end nothing really sticks in your head. It's cheap horror movie candy without some nostalgic charm, chaotic extravaganza or self aware minimalism to safe the verdict. The simple carpet progressions or two-finger double dips on the piano remain quite superficial after close examination. And when you forcefully pull them aside, you notice that there are no real riffs underneath.

That's right, the guitars are just there to slap the attribute "metal" on the whole thing. It's quite the trick to play for a whole album with the genre poisoning chug chug backup drops and downspiral melodeath scraping patterns without igniting even a single spark of interest. Statistically, even the worst composers on earth discover one great or just "acceptable" electric guitar riff per album, but apparently Ceremonial Embrace hate metal guitars like Norman Bates hates his mother. I can't explain it any other way because you rarely come across a band that offers this much nothing in the guitar riff department. It's not even funny, you hear guitars but the absence of real engaging or even enthusiastic riffs makes you doubt the fact that there are guitars at all. Sorry, Ceremonial Embrace, maybe you are really cool and nice guys, but what the actual fucking shit fuck is up with your riffs? Is this what you practiced for months before entering the studio? Why?

I feel sorry for the drummer. He clearly knows his shit, can blast like a machine and rocks every beat and rhythm you throw at him. He deserves a better album to perform. And I deserve a better album to listen to. This "music" here is just an afterthought of a worn out idea. I should have listened to that bad and cheap cover artwork, it was trying to tell me about the useless content within. Next time I'll listen. God damn, metal is tiresome some time.