ALBUM REVIEW: Siege – The Slow Death

Australia’s THE SLOW DEATH may not have released tonnes of music in their near 15 years of existence, but what they lack in quantity they more than make up for with quality. Opting to blend death doom with a headier post rock/metal edge as opposed to the overtly Gothic flourishes that many of their peers embrace, the band have managed to craft a sound that distinguishes them from the majority of death doom acts, garnering a solid following as a result. Their latest album, Siege, comes over six years since the release of its predecessor, Ark, and sees the band’s sound become slightly darker and harsher if anything, without sacrificing the core elements that make their music so engrossing and memorable.

Tyranny starts things off strongly, with airy guitars, haunting keyboards and minimalist drumming giving this a glorious post metal feel. This is coupled with dense, brooding rhythms that lend a bleak, ferocious doom undercurrent to a powerful and melodic piece of music on the whole. The stark clash between soaring female vocals and denser gutturals further adds to this sense of contrasting light and dark within the music, providing an eclectic and hypnotic sound that draws the listener right into the music.

Famine follows in a similar vein, with crystalline guitar hooks, keyboards and angelic vocals creating a lush atmosphere right off the bat. It gradually incorporates harsher death doom elements as the song gathers momentum, with the slick riffs eventually giving way to a thick groove and monstrous growls that push this song in a completely different direction. The song jumps back and forth between these two extremes, once again resulting in an immersive offering that covers a wide range musically, without the shifts in approach ever feeling too abrupt.

Pestilence has a more spartan sound, with the drums and guitars especially being noticeably more reserved in a way that gives this particular track an almost ambient quality. The rest of the music slowly forms around this until the song has morphed into a much more traditional death doom piece with brilliantly morose guitar work providing many of its highlights. Much like on the first half of the album, the sharp contrast between the two vocal styles works incredibly well, allowing this song to sound fierce and beautiful in equal measure. Ascent of the Flames sees the diverse mix of styles begin to coalesce together with great results, especially with regards to the guitars. The delicate post metal components, courtesy of the leads and keyboards, perfectly complement the darker and more bellicose side that comes from the rhythm guitars and vocals. It makes for an exceptionally catchy and powerful conclusion to a varied and epic record.

Compared to some of the band’s earlier efforts, Siege is a decidedly more visceral album, with a rawer production and more emphasis on the darker, gloomier side of their sound. That is not to say that this album’s lighter moments are not there, and don’t elevate this album in their own way. The more atmosphere driven post metal flourishes that are spread throughout possess a sharper, polished sound that breaks up the intensity with some fantastic, catchy moments that do an excellent job of grabbing the listeners attention and, more importantly, maintaining it. Siege is another great addition to THE SLOW DEATH‘s already impressive body of work, and showcases a markedly different sound and approach to many of their peers for all the right reasons.

Rating: 8/10

Siege is out now via Transcending Obscurity Records.

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