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"Deadly Fairy Tales" - 1999 / "Rock Hell" - 2001 Gandalf |
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"Deadly Fairytales," the deadly debut for this up and coming Finnish Metal super group combines the heroic intensity of In Flames with the shuddering grooves of At The Gates and melodic principles of Therion, combined into a neatly complex yet highly artistic form of Gothic Metal with Black overtones… a true work of immeasurably consistent art thatstays with you until the end. Such praise is not befitting many of the bands breaking onto the scene today. Gandalf possesses a style and finesse to their playing that while many have upheld and continued to excel at to this day, the many others still remain off in seclusion calculating just what it would take to rise above that immense sea of dread they've languished in for so long. Biting riffs and blissful lyrical
content mark this most "deadly" of fairytales, definitely not
pretty yet seductive nonetheless. "The Cradle" opens slowly,
reflectively before melancholic minor chording bursts into the picture "Dark Memories" is where
for the first time, nearly half an album in, we get bombarded with the
heaviest of firepower reeled off at blinding speed and based around a
desperate attempt to reveal that which lay dormant-internal Gandalf seems to have plotted their course very carefully at indeed marks their starting point at a place where many bands seem to reach their "cross over" point-that which bridges the gap from their Blackest early days to their more accessibly refined later period. Think of Gandalf's style beside
the above mentioned, to being similar to Cemetary between their "Godless
Beauty," "Black Vanity" period or Amott's venture into
more melodic and musical terrain-very big on instrumentality and broad
chordal arrangements, full of emotion, atmosphere, and an untamed spirit
for adventure without leaving the "Deadly Fairytales"
is captivating and cacophonous without draining the listening sensation
by overdrawn technical Billed as "AC/DC meets At The Gates…" and who's not gonna get psyched for that? Does it hold true though-each is a tough act to follow-listen to me I sound like Wayne Newton or somebody… Well I'll be damned, they are something of a hybrid between the two-sorry Wayne, they'll be no showboating here tonight. Gandalf, presumably a Finnish word
considering they are a Finnish band, though I might still need to consult
my collegiate dictionary, has a very traditionally Metal rhythm section
going for 'em on this "Rock Hell" phenomena-I mean straight
outta '83 with near-death vocals/grunts where more singing actually develops
during the choral background, and so "Death-Rock," an up and
coming new breed of slightly less than "Death Metal" and slightly
more This has been a really cool style
still in development however but more and more bands are really getting
into that raw-edged and nasty style more associative with the underground
but not quite so bent on fanning the flames, as it The growl-vocals put the At The Gates comparisons in close proximity while the chugging, groove-driven and often melodic guitar led song structures give rise to the AC/DC claim but carry it much more into what you may remember from classic Saxon or even Krokus. It's listenable Heavy Rock without the ability to make your ears bleed unnecessarily-there's plenty of other stuff from this part of the world for that, killer! Amazingly, here's a band that can do a song called "One More For The Dead" and make it feel like I'm listening to Night Ranger for a minute-inexplicable though entertaining. And now we return to Cradle of Filth thank you very much! Oddly enough, Gandalf may well be a band that in spite of being built on outdated principles and overwrought Nordic devilment and melody, they could well appeal to an even broader base of fans than their many predecessors. It's taking that whole idea of the "Death Rock" movement, rightfully acceptable as it is, and really engraining the true Metal principles that led many a secondary NWOBHM'er to their demise anyway but later respectability. However you define 'em, we could all use a little "Rock" in our "Hell" from time to time and I think these guys with the unusual and don't call me "Bob" name might be onto something from the very beginning… Released by Earache Records Limited. Review by Vinnie Apicella [va85@columbia.edu] P.O. Box 20252 |