ALBUM REVIEW: Tales From Six Feet Under Vol II – Charlotte Wessels
Back in 2020, CHARLOTTE WESSELS had an idea to find a way to release material she’d written that wasn’t suitable for her then-band, symphonic metallers DELAIN. What followed was her Patreon, where she would record a song every month and upload it. When she left the band, she continued doing this, with the intention of eventually releasing that material to the wider world and not just patrons. The result of that was Tales From Six Feet Under Vol I, an eclectic mixture of songs and sounds that wasn’t quite sequenced or intended as a typical album, but a showcase of the songs she’d shared previously.
A year on and Tales From Six Feet Under Vol II is arriving; again a collection of songs taken from her Patreon that have been released in the last year, and again featuring an eclectic mix of styles. Though, with some time away from the genre, there’s now more of a flirtation with symphonic metal again with some heavier numbers and even some screamed vocals (Toxic – we’ll come to that later). It generally leans somewhat heavier than before, but there’s still a pop tinge and a strong ear for melody.
On first glance it might be concerning that this is a second album in a two-year period, but again it’s critical to remember that every song on here was not only written but released to her Patreon community in a month; with only one person in the writing room, as it were, there’s no compromise or consensus needed. That means there’s a consistent level of quality across the board, even where genres blur amongst one another. From opener Venus Rising and its triumphant “Venus rises from the waves / Never hides and never change” first line, Vol 2 starts strong with its power pop groove and empowering chorus.
From here, Wessels moves through symphonic metal, such as on Human To Ruin that’s underpinned by choral singing, or The Phantom Touch that continues in a similar vein, flourishes of keys and strings accompanying crunching guitar. While she doesn’t quite break out into the operatic style so frequently employed in the genre, there’s a huge amount of power and feeling behind it that might have been otherwise lost. Toxic, on the other hand, was written around the time of the overturn of Roe v Wade and is a seething takedown of patriarchal society and misogyny. Pulsing electronics underpin scathing lyrics of “Ain’t it strange / Another rapist walks free / While a woman / Fights for autonomy” in its opening minute, before vicious screams of the title shred nerves. The juxtaposition is startling and effective.
Two years into her solo career, CHARLOTTE WESSELS has blossomed as a songwriter and solo artist. More comfortable going back to symphonic metal, but also confident in her own abilities to know she doesn’t need to, it’s the sound of an artist who’s found her voice more and more and explored her own muse without constraint. Her unerring vision in standing up to the world’s wrongs, as well as exploring emotion more nebulously on other songs, shows an artist in firm command of her own destiny. Tales From Six Feet Under Vol II is another strong entry into her catalogue – though as she hinted in an interview with us recently, Vol III is by no means certain; she’ll continue to follow her own muse, wherever that leads.
Rating: 8/10
Tales From Six Feet Under Vol II is set for release on October 7th via Napalm Records.
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