Artist: Moonspell
Label: Century Media Records
Release Date: 10/21/03
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Title: The Antidote Artist: Moonspell Label: Century Media Records Release Date: 10/21/03 |
Judgment Committee Reviews | Rating |
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Go to Reader Reviews | ||
Abyss's Review:
After bursting on the scene with the interesting, provocative, and timely Wolfheart, Moonspell immediately carved a niche for themselves amongst fans of the gothic influenced slice of the metallic universe. They quickly proved that their debut was no fluke with the solid (but slightly flawed) Irreligious (always kinda reminded me of some drunken Bostoner saying ‘irregardless’…). But soon after this band became a victim of the experimentation with expansion of sound that initially revitalized, but (in many cases) eventually bound and stagnated many metal acts in the mid to late nineties. Bands like Amorphis, Tiamat, Samael, and Moonspell eventually wound up drifting too far from their creative strengths, and began a string of uninspired albums. For Moonspell, the weakness would begin in earnest with Sin/Pecado and would progressively get worse.
Needless to say, I lost interest in the band, and years later, while I saw them opening for In Flames, I remember thinking that they never really lived up to their potential. This brings us to their new album, The Antidote, which surprised me with its strength and relevance. The album makes a conscious effort to start off heavy and powerful and slowly but surely evolve into something more melodic and peaceful, and it does so with obvious success. If I had a criticism, it would have to be that I think the album would be more effective moving in the opposite direction, from melodic to menacing. A crescendo always hits me harder than a decrescendo.
"Moonspell are back, you better take notice." But let’s face it, most bands don’t really care about my opinion when it comes to their artistic vision (I found it hard to believe too, but it’s true!). And while I wouldn’t call this album a ‘throwback’ to their older sound, I think it will definitely win over many of their older fans who, like me, drifted away from the band in their more experimental days. The growled vocals are powerful, the Crash Test Dummies baritone is less annoying than you remember and the music is truly inspired. Moonspell are back, you better take notice. One word review: Unexpected.
Death's Review:
Moonspell are back with a much-improved new album that takes listeners back to a more metallic, straightforward and ultimately better direction than the keyboard soaked, goth/pop silliness of a few years back. For example, when Moonspell toured with In Flames, I sat in the back of the club and laughed at them. They were truly that painful. This does not seem like the same band. The Antidote is a much more listenable and frankly much more metal album than I was expecting. Low-pitched clean vocals still rule the day, but there are death growls and double-bass pounding too where appropriate, like on opener “In and Above Men,” a song which is totally metal and catchy too. Track two, “From Lowering Skies,” begins to display the balance of this record, building with clean baritone vocals into headbanging double-bass riffs with smatterings of death growls. The death vocals are much more effective than the clean vocals as far as I am concerned, but I suppose the clean vocals are important to give Moonspell their sense of uniqueness too. In the end, this album probably strikes an important balance for Moonspell fans, offering a well-produced and fresh sounding album that captures elements of a return to past sounds and is a moody yet heavy work that should be commended. In this era where heavy goth is gaining commercial attention (Evanesence, AFI, Type O Negative), perhaps Moonspell will garner some acclaim and sell some albums with this release. They certainly have a much more palatable product to peddle (from both a commercial and an underground metal perspective) than they have had in recent years. A quality release and a step in the right direction for a veteran band.
" A quality release and a step in the right direction for a veteran band."
Hel's Review:
Hey, wait a minute! I thought Moonspell gave up metal in favor of faggy goth years ago! Apparently, they finally found The Antidote for the lameness that was their last few records. I came into the band’s discography too late to ever have considered them good. My tolerance for whiny ambient goth is very low in general and Moonspell’s recent works were anathema to me. When I saw them open for In Flames in NY years ago I thought they were terrible (and I still wonder why they were all covered in baby powder). The last contact I had with them was the sole spin I gave Darkness and Hope. That album was so awful I could never bring myself to listen to it again.
"Though the album does not end as strongly as it begins, it is still leaps and bounds better than I had expected." But apparently Moonspell finally figured it out. This album doesn’t suck at all. It’s actually good. It’s actually metal. What a nice surprise. Though the album does not end as strongly as it begins, it is still leaps and bounds better than I had expected. The abysmal clean vocal style that warbles annoyingly and tainted much of their latter work has taken a much less prominent role, which is a huge blessing in my book. There is another clean vocal style on this album, one that is more tolerable, but the true saving grace is that many of the vocal lines are delivered in a wonderfully harsh metal growl.
The best part of the record, and probably the band, is the impressive percussion found on this record. To me, the drum production on this is perfect – I wish all drums on all albums were mixed this clearly. The percussive solo sections on “From Lowering Skies” draw me in every time. Combining this striking aspect with improved vocal lines, good overall production, and songs that are for the most part actually well written and downright metal, and you’ve got the best album Moonspell has released since their early days.
"Kudos to Moonspell for their staggering return to form with The Antidote." Kudos to Moonspell for their staggering return to form with The Antidote. Too often when a band changes direction, it is disappointing and irreversible. Moonspell have turned themselves back around in the right direction, and for the first time, I actually enjoyed their new release. I daresay I may even be looking forward to seeing them live. Ok, well, I’m looking forward to seeing this material live at least. Definitely check this one out – it’s worth it, just for the surprise value alone.
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