Suspiria

My first encounter with Darkwell was way back in the day, when I watched the music video for Fate Prisoner (in 240p naturally), from their sophomore effort 'Metatron' - at the time I was only slightly impressed, and I didn't have the resources to pursue this band in any way. Needless to say, this band would be nothing but a forgotten memory had it not been for two things: 1) Stephanie Luzie, vocalist from 2003 until this bands eventual demise, sang in Atargatis, which is a band that I rather enjoy, and 2) at some point, I heard them again, all thanks to Pandora, something that I now seldom use, but has introduced me to many musical acts in the past. Unlike the rest of this four-review series, that covers bands that are somewhat less-well-known in the gothic metal scene, I can't pinpoint exactly when or how the Austria-native gothic metallers came back into my life; It probably happened between spring 2012 and summer 2014, back when this band was still officially broken up. To be honest, I was still slightly put-off by this band, but eventually they wormed their way into my heart via the ears...

Right off the bat, the most off-putting element of this act is probably the vocalist, Alexandra Pittracher - vocals for me are probably the most important aspect of any ensemble when it comes to passing listens, everything else comes after. Though I now have an appreciation for her voice, it took me a while to get there. At the time of this recording, Pittracher was vocally young, and though her tone is a softer, more delicate one, she also had a certain tinniness and nasal-ness that is hard to access, in that regard her voice more closely resembles that of Monika Pedersen (you know, that singer who was part of Sirenia for a year before completely disappearing from the metal scene). But, over time, Alexandra did win me over with her charisma and charm, not to mention that these vocal melodies are real ear-wormers.

Musically, Darkwell's first full-length effort is very strong. It's melodic, but heavy; atmospheric and catchy. Though maybe a tad formulaic - mid-paced, minor-keyed, 4 - 5 minute songs - the music is tightly composed. With a large focus on the guitars and riffs, simple, yet moving rhythms, and using conservative and simple keyboard melodies to add flair and back the vocals, Darkwell manages to maintain a grittiness in their tone that meshes well with their gothic mysticism. The band does well to never go overboard with their "orchestrations", which is smart, because they clearly didn't have the means to go full-on symphonic, Latin chanting a la Tristania's 'World of Glass'. Some of their keyboards do sound a bit cheesy, and keeping those aspects of the music on the minimal side keeps the album sounding more timeless than not.

However, one thing that does come out cheesy, and I can't imagine it ever not being cheesy, are the spoken vocals supplied by keyboardist Christian Filip - though Alexandra does have a line or two here and there. The spoken parts are just not well incorporated into the music, and don't really fit in. It doesn't help that Darkwell is not one of those bands whose lyricism is meant to impact the listener in any lasting way. The lyrics are pretty by-the-books, the songs are more about concepts of darkness than the popular romanticism of the mid nineties, and are good for what they are, but are a bit over the top when clumsily spoken right into your ear. If everything else about this album wasn't so well constructed, they could've taken me right out of music, but for the most part, they go forgiven.

'Suspiria' is just an all-together captivating album. I don't know what it is, but something about the the combination of dirty sounding guitars, pounding rhythms, atmosphere oriented keyboards, and the light melancholy vocals, paired with the album's cover art that makes me think of those history documentaries on Dark-Ages Europe. It's a very odd feeling, but a very satisfying listen. And with the band currently reformed with their original vocalist, and recently having released new material, I wish the band well, and hope for many years of Darkwell albums to come.

Highlights: Pictures of Strive, Two Souls Creature: The Salvation, & Realm of Darkness