[ENGLISH VERSION BELOW] Le monde du Melodic Death Metal est en émoi. Car la sortie d’un nouvel album d’Insomnium est toujours un petit événement. Car qualité et rigueur sont maîtres mots dans leur discographie. Même si le précédent Anno 1696 était un chouïa en dessous (mais quand même un très bon album).
Nous n’étions pas prêt pour ça. Un album d’une telle qualité ne peut rester dans l’anonymat. Quelle splendeur. Heart Like A Grave était bien. Celui-ci est 10 niveaux au dessus. L’Heritage de leur période 2008/2015. Un bijou de Death Mélodique. Et évidemment un des meilleurs albums de l’année.
Tracklist :
1. The Cold Song
2. Shadowlife
3. Remembrance
4. Gleam in the Black
5. The Hour Grows Late
6. Arch of the Sky
7. Pathways of the Night
8. Ethereal Sleep
9. The Banished
10. Journey’s End
[ENGLISH VERSION] The world of melodic death metal is abuzz. After all, the release of a new Insomnium album is always a bit of an event. Quality and precision are the hallmarks of their discography. Even if their previous album, *Anno 1696*, was a tad below par (though still a very good album). We’re now eager to dive into what is, after all, their 10th album – let’s go.
We get straight to the heart of the matter with an intro inspired by the Baroque composer Henry Purcell. ‘The Cold Song’ recounts how he froze to death in his garden one winter’s night because his wife refused to let him in after a night of heavy drinking.
As ‘Shadowlife’ (with its catchy chorus) and ‘Remembrance’ take over, a certain feeling emerges. There’s a sense of joy despite the sadness of their music. A glimmer of light amidst the melancholy. The melodies are remarkable and memorable. We’re trying to pinpoint the mood that reminds us of something.
The riffs are driving, the vocals crystal-clear, the drumming sustained. And that production. We’re tapping into something. But what?
And then it all becomes clear the moment ‘Gleam In The Black’ kicks in. This track is clearly a logical follow-up to ‘Ephemeral’. Yes, it all brings to mind the album *Shadows Of The Dying Sun*. You know that moment when everything falls into place? That’s where we are. This is what we could have had had we followed up on that masterpiece released 12 years ago.
On ‘The Hour Grows Late’, three members of Amorphis lend a hand to their compatriots. No doubt the same will be true live early next year on their European tour. It’s a track that stands out a bit on this album, but it’s not unpleasant to listen to.
‘Arch Of The Sky’, the third single, gets things back on track. Pure Insomnium. What a treat. The same goes for ‘Pathways Of The Night’. Everything that has been the hallmark of their melodic death metal.
Finally comes ‘Ethereal Sleep’. The album’s standout track. Simply magnificent. A blend of ‘One For Sorrow’ and ‘The Promethean Song’. It’s impossible not to be moved by this track. That chorus with its clean vocals, enhanced by Markus Vanhala’s lead guitar, sends shivers down our spines and almost brings tears to our eyes.
Everything is coherent and in its right place. And whilst the heavy-hitting ‘The Banished’ rouses us from this daze, we end on a gentle note. Leaning more towards doom-death, ‘Journey’s End’ brings this album to a splendid close.
We weren’t ready for this. An album of such quality cannot remain unknown. What splendour. *Heart Like A Grave* was good. This one is ten levels above it. The legacy of their 2008–2015 period. A gem of melodic death metal. And, of course, one of the best albums of the year.
