ALBUM REVIEW: Ultraviolet – Poets of the Fall

Finland’s POETS OF THE FALL are arguably one of the country’s best kept musical secrets. Formed in 2003, they’ve slowly but surely gathered global momentum as the years have gone by, with two specific moments pushing them further along in the glorious title track from second album Carnival of Rust and their moniker of OLD GODS OF ASGARD in the hugely popular video game Alan Wake. They’re seriously big business in their home county as well, with five of their previous seven albums reaching the #1 spot on the Finnish charts. On Friday, they have the chance to make it six albums in eight when Ultraviolet sees the light of day, released via Playground Music.

Naturally, POETS OF THE FALL aren’t slouches; they’ve been at this game long enough to be competent songwriters and musicians and there are several tracks on here which display this to the full. The Sweet Escape is a synth-driven anthem that harks right back to the feel and sound of the 1980’s and In a Perfect World showcases their strong lyrical prowess, the line “Living in a world where it’s always Monday, 1am and dark and it’s always pouring” a feeling many will resonate; follow up track Angel is also strong, a lot pop-ier than the rest of the album but incredibly catchy. Then there’s Standstill, which strips back everything to just a guitar and the unique voice of Marko Saaresto, who is a criminally underrated vocalist and is exemplary across Ultraviolet, particularly on the songs mentioned.

What lets Ultraviolet down, however, is that it’s infuriatingly inconsistent. The album starts slowly; lead single Dancing on Broken Glass is not a particularly strong opener, lacking a memorable hook and whilst My Dark Disquiet contains added stomp with electric guitars and a good chorus, False Kings is a huge slab of cheese with its orchestral strings that stalls proceedings once more. Even in the second half, Moments Before the Storm sounds like a NIGHTWISH knock-off that wouldn’t have even made it as a bonus track and the closing Choir of Cicadas is incredibly overblown with its organ overtones and almost hymn-like quality. Considering how good the album is in places, it’s disappointing to see that POETS OF THE FALL couldn’t keep the momentum going for longer than a song or two; as one starts to get into it, they’re stalled by a track of lesser quality.

Fans of the likes of THE RASMUS, POETS OF THE FALL‘ fellow countrymen HIM and PLACEBO will probably gain a lot more from Ultraviolet than those with a penchant for music on the heavier end of the spectrum, but despite the patchiness of the record as a whole, there’s certainly a good amount here to enjoy and appreciate; just don’t expect it to stay in the mind for very long.

Rating: 6/10

Ultraviolet is set for release on October 5th via Playground Music.

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