ILLNATH

Before us is the second release from Danish band ILLNATH. The group plays in a rather commercial direction: using a symphonic black metal foundation, the end result is heavy-power metal with atmospheric keyboards and a standard screaming/growling vocal pair. Fury and ferocity are absent; the sound is exceedingly clean. There are also a number of other borrowed ideas on display -- for instance, in the second track "Virgin Soul," the influence of CRADLE OF FILTH is felt in absolutely everything. Otherwise, there are very beautiful melodic introductions that break into the vocalist's growling, accompanied by guitars playing in a power metal manner, and wonderful instrumental passages. The only drawback is that it is neither original nor new. It is difficult to single out hits -- the album is fairly even, and on one hand there are no glaring flaws, while on the other hand that is precisely the main flaw, since it is hard to point to any distinguishing feature. As such, this is an album you can enjoy listening to repeatedly, without being particularly impressed by it. Among the unconditional positives, one must note the very interesting design and artwork of the disc.