Artist: Susperia
Label: Candlelight Records
Release Date: 6/29/04
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Title: Unlimited Artist: Susperia Label: Candlelight Records Release Date: 6/29/04 |
Judgment Committee Reviews | Rating |
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Abyss's Review:
I was really scared about this album. I've been hearing good things about it for quite some time and I was afraid that all of the good press would heighten my expectations and lead me to think of this record as a disappointment. The most common comparison I heard was to Testament's The Gathering, which had me foaming at the mouth and peeing my pants (of course, I consistently did those things long before I ever heard of this band, but it does make a good excuse).
"One word review: Yeeeaaahh!" And while the Testament analogy inevitably falls apart eventually, it does at least describe this album in part. The 'new thrash' of Testament's The Gathering is really in a league by itself. It's much less of a 'throwback' sound compared to most contemporary thrash acts, retaining the desperate and toxic feel of the past with a polished, thick sound that is more commonly found on records by bands like Nevermore and Soilwork than anything thrash. This is a sound that I would love to see exploited more, and Susperia seem to be up to the task. Fans of The Haunted and Grimfist as well as the last Testament album should really eat this stuff up.
To be fair to Susperia (and Testament) these albums don't really sound all that similar, they just have a similar attitude and a similar goal. Unlimited isn't afraid to mix it up, changing tempos, guitar effects, cadences, and vocal styles throughout the record, becoming a great role model for other bands, both young and old. When critics complain about a record being too one dimensional, many say things like, "Of course the songs sound similar, we're a (death, thrash, black, etc.) band!". Well, a record like this shows you how it should be done. Each song has its own personality, its own soul. The songwriting utilizes different textures as well as different sounds. The songs don't all follow formula, but don't drift with experimentation either - they're just killer metal songs that stand on their own as well as fit together along side of each other. The vocals, while definitely influenced by Chuck Billy, are such a welcome change from the syrupy sweet vocals or the screaming/growling vocals that now seem like the only two choices in metal music. They're able to cover a wide range of emotion as well as carry a tune, but remain aggressive and gritty, refusing to allow any of the song's power to be diluted.
Simply put, this is an album I can't recommend enough and one that should be in every metalhead's collection. This is one the most complete album I've heard in a long time. One word review: Yeeeaaahh!
Death's Review:
I have to admit that I had some misconceptions about this band. I was thinking, based on image and whatnot, that this was more of a black metal thing. Of course, with a Norwegian band having been formed in 1999 by then-exiting Dimmu Borgir drummer Tjodalv, I suppose such expectations are not that far-fetched. Anyway, it’s not really black metal. It’s much more like “blackened” Bay Area thrash. Susperia wear a serious Testament influence on their sleeve on this record. And frankly, I haven’t heard that many purely Testament-influenced bands before, at least not one who employs the influence so blatantly as Susperia does here. Sure, they add their own Norwegian black metal twist, but the intent is to thrash out, old school metal style with lots of melodic heaviness and it shows. The Studio Fredman production is as good as you’d expect, and the musicianship is decent enough. Of course, the Testament comparison almost ruins it for me, because as much respect as I have for Susperia, they are not as good of musicians as Testament, and not as good of songwriters either. But perhaps that’s just my personal bias.
"Sure, they add their own Norwegian black metal twist, but the intent is to thrash out, old school metal style with lots of melodic heaviness and it shows." But speaking of respect for Susperia, my respect for the band only increased after reading the article on the band in the most recent Metal Maniacs. Apparently, Tjodlav was offered to rejoin Dimmu for this summer’s U.S. Ozzfest tour, and he ultimately turned it down to stick with Susperia. Now that to me is dedication, turning down such an opportunity. And I suppose it says something about his confidence in this band, which for the most part is well-deserved. Watch for the new video for the opening track, “Chemistry” coming soon to a video show near you. I’m hopeful for a U.S. tour too.
Hel's Review:
Death and I were driving in the car together when we listened to this album for the first time. After a few minutes, he looked over at me and asked, “Are you sure this is Susperia?” I, for one, have not heard their last effort, Vindication, so this may be the missing link I needed to follow their leap from Predominance to Unlimited, but regardless, a leap was definitely made somewhere along the way.The vocals are the key component in this perceived drastic change. On Predominance the vocals are delivered in a black metal growl, yet here we find the vocalist handing us a more Bay Area thrash-styled, cleaner vocal line. Does it work? Absolutely. Does it change my perception of the band entirely? Yes, as a matter of fact, it does. I liked the black metal vocal style too, but this shift has created an entirely different perception of the band for me, and that is something that doesn’t happen very often. I find it highly refreshing.
"The performances on Unlimited are all excellent, and the songs are very well written." It has obviously been years since I spent any significant time with Predominance and I rue the fact that I don’t have a copy of Vindication, which I would dearly love to put in my player about now, so I cannot say with absolute certainly that the musical style has changed direction drastically, or be able to discuss the more gradual transition that may have been found on that album. And really, I don’t think the music itself has changed all that drastically. However, the vocals are a complete 180 from the style I knew before, that’s just a fact. But, again, it works for me.
This is really the only drastic directional shift a band like this could make that would not turn a person like me off, and instead piqued my interest. A shift toward a more death style, for example, would have been merely predictable, for this is the most common sort of change found in the underground metal world. But this vocal switch up was definitely unforeseen, by me, at least. Frankly, the more I listen to Unlimited, the more I find myself liking it.
But then, I do love old school thrash. And there is absolutely no arguing that the predominate sound of Susperia’s new album is thrash, though it is also much, much more as well. To merely pigeonhole it as thrash would be a mistake, and catching all of the various elements integrated into their music is something everyone should try to do for themselves. There are definitely still a few black elements, but beyond the vocal style, those were rather subtle in the music on Predominance and remain so here, though perhaps even more so. Just as the vocal feel on their first album gave it a stronger black metal flavor, the thrash style vocals here lend a similar influence. The performances on Unlimited are all excellent, and the songs are very well written. The production is also very nice, rounding out the overall package well.
I sincerely hope that Susperia is able to come over and do a U.S. tour for this album. I would absolutely love to hear the new songs played next to the older ones; I think that it will make for one of the most entertaining sets I’ve heard in a long time. Plus, I don’t believe I’ve ever had the opportunity to check them out live, and I would definitely love to have a chance to, particularly after having such a great time listening to this album.
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