Symbolic

Well, a fact that many metal heads forget sometimes is that heavy metal and all of its countless subgenres are music. If I think of "Symbolic" as merely a heavy metal album, I would have to rate it with a 315%. So, I'm going to review this as a work of music.

First of all, it's not like this is a standard death metal all-out attack. This band had nothing to prove. They stood, they still stand and they will forever stand among the top of the top heavy metal bands that have existed. "Symbolic" is a monster of an album. The songs flow flawlessly one after the other and the whole album sounds like a symphony. Some certain parts might resemble each other, but, what did you want? Some parts of Beethoven's 5th Symphony also resemble each other, does it make the Symphony itself a bad work of art? The answer is no. So be it with "Symbolic".

Don't expect a track-by-track presentation on this one. It would take me a month to describe each song and I honestly don't think that words are enough. If you want a highlight, I can say that my personal choice would be "Crystal Mountain". But tommorow it could be "Symbolic" or "Without Judgement", so if you want me to propose something, I suggest that you buy this album so that you can form an opinion on your own.

I don't know if one could consider this to be technical death metal, but the technical part is there the way I want it to be. Don't expect the ultra-speed face-melting uber blast beats, the drumming is more jazz influenced and so is the whole album's structure. And, I could say that even the fast spots are in a strange way emotional. Indeed, what else would it be with Gene Hoglan (ex-Dark Angel, ex-Testament)? Kelly Conlon (ex Monstrosity) gives a feeling of fullness to the songs, with basslines which exist in total harmony with the general flow of the melodies songs in their entirety. The guitar work is really close to perfect. This band knows where it's at and they don't make use of 3 minute long guitar showdowns, instead build up on intelligent melodies. Chuck's solos are emotional as always and reflect a wide variety of musical influences. Also, his vocals are somewhat higher than, say, in Leprosy. They are definitely perfect though, most of the times you can understand what Chuck is saying. Let me add that this album in a way reminds me of At the Gates' "Slaughter of the Soul", which is also a masterpiece. However, "Symbolic" is way more advanced than "Slaughter..." in terms of composition complexity.

Overall, you must not expect anything specific from Symbolic, because you will probably get disappointed. Maybe words are really poor to describe this music. This is not death metal. This is Death metal. Chuck Schuldiner was not just a key-figure in heavy metal, he was a key-figure in musical history.

If you don't own this, buy it right now. It deserves it. You deserve it.