Weiland is the final dot closing a perfect circle, the last stone in a Japanese rock garden that brings the surrounding space into harmony with the observer. Weiland is the final release from the, in some sense, unique German band Empyrium. It is a gravestone over a grave that Markus had been digging since '94 -- a headstone standing in a dense forest by a forgotten road, tilted and covered in moss. And we are accidental travelers who stumbled upon it on a quiet winter night. There is only you, the dark unexplored whispering forest, and the sky -- an endless starry sky.
And each person finds their own way to this nocturnal beauty, to this tranquility. This is not a wide, illuminated highway with signs and markings; it is an abandoned winding path, and not everyone will find their way here without getting lost in the dark forest.
If we set aside the lyricism, Weiland is an acoustic dark wave record with German-language lyrics -- beautiful, somber, and sorrowful. Clean male vocals sing of the grandeur and beauty of nature. Here the weary traveler will find everything they need -- guitars, flutes, cellos, and many more delights.
Compared to the 1999 album 'Where at Night the Wood Grouse Plays,' 'Weiland' is heavier in its darkness (frightening shadows appear in the night from time to time -- you feel uneasy in an empty, cold room), more serious in its hopelessness.
Not the best album, but undoubtedly a very good one.